Strawberry Milk
by wordkill
Summary: AU. The first day Kurosaki Ichigo attended Seireitei High, he was punched in the face, his strawberry milk was stolen, and he made an enemy. All three were caused by a particularly frigid midget on her high horse.
1. A New Beginning

**Chapter one**

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* * *

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Today, Kurosaki Ichigo had a permanent scowl on his face. Which wasn't a surprise since a scowl always seemed to be present on his face but starting today, it would be permanent_._ All because of the old man. He had been at the dojo with his friends while his dad eagerly signed the death contract to his current social life. Private school.

"_I'M GOING TO WHAT?"_

"_Ta-da! Look at your uniform, son!" _

"_WHAT THE HELL, OLD MAN? HOW COULD YOU HAVE AGREED WITHOUT ASKING ME FIRST?"_

_Isshin retreated to his full sized photo of his deceased wife, pawing at the photo as he wailed, "Oh, Masaki! I only wanted the best for our son! Wouldn't you agree?"_

_His dad's voice steadily increased as Ichigo gripped his temples, his vein popping._

"_OH, MASAKI, MY LOVE! IF ONLY YOU WERE HERE TO SMACK SOME GRATEFULNESS INTO THIS UNDESERVING SON!"_

That damn annoying old man, agreeing to anything that meant hell for him! They had offered him a spot as a student at Seireitei high school which was a private school for the 'gifted and talented'. In other words, it was well-known…to be full of stuck up, rich kids. For Kami's sake, he'd grown up with his friends making fun of the lame school with the totally dorky and constricting uniforms. The sweaters, the crisp collared shirts, and the badges screamed anal retentive.

The students at Seireitei would also look down at them, Karakura High school, with their noses impossibly high up in the air as they brushed lint off their already obnoxiously neat uniforms. But now, he would be one of them. Apparently, after twenty plus years of being known as the school with a 24 carat gold stick up its ass, Seireitei decided to become more "diversified" which meant adding a middle class kid as a scholarship student for Kendo. But he just liked to believe that Seireitei sucked so bad at Kendo that they were desperate to have even a public school student attend if it meant they could have another honorable title added to their name.

He barely paid attention to his angry reflection as he finished the last button on his shirt and slipped on the itchy sweater. Even Kami must have taken pity on him since his dad didn't send him a wakeup call that morning. If his dad had, then he really wouldn't feel accountable for letting loose on him. He glanced at his window- on a typical day at Karakura High, Keigo and Mizuiro would be waiting for him right outside his house. He kind of even missed Keigo's obnoxious yelling.

"_Hurry, Ichigo, the bus is here!"_

"Alright, I'm coming!" He grabbed his backpack and reluctantly made his way downstairs with a sullen expression attached to his face. The rest of his family was sitting at the table eating breakfast. He grabbed a piece of toast and stuck it in his mouth while he slung on his backpack.

Yuzu smiled encouragingly at him as she passed him his lunch, "Have a good day at school, brother!"

"Bring some cute female students home, son!"

Ichigo turned his head, about to retort when he was pleasantly greeted with Karin's triple kick to his dad's face. He smirked, feeling somewhat satisfied and left, hearing, "Old bearded pervert!" and whining in response.

He stood outside just to study the bus for a second. It was huge. They never even had buses at Karakura high school; he had always walked with his friends. The door opened and the driver in a stupid looking striped hat greeted him, "Morning, new transfer student!"

Ichigo merely scowled and muttered a greeting back as he stepped into the bus.

The driver didn't seem to be affected by his scowl and cheerfully grinned as he closed the door, "Ah, a bit shy, aren't we? That's alright; you'll become well adjusted soon enough!"

Ichigo heard whispers as he shuffled through the walkway, striving to find an empty seat. He found one at the very end, feeling slightly relieved to be away from the hushed discussions about him. Not that he cared about the possible rumors buzzing around about him, but it seemed that trouble was heavily attracted to him. The bus immediately jerked to a start and began its way out of the neighborhood.

Red hair peeped out of the seat in front of him, "Yo, new kid,"

Ichigo reluctantly looked up to see a tall guy with spiky red hair and black tattoos on his face.

The guy took this chance to talk, "You're in the wrong seat."

Ichigo just glared at him, "What, you guys even have assigned seats in this bus?"

"Just in that one. Now scram, and go find another seat."

"What the hell? Why should I have to listen to a tattooed pineapple like you?"

Ichigo's comment finally got to the red haired guy as he grabbed Ichigo by the collar, "What did you say, you orange haired punk?"

"I _said_, you stupid pineapple-"Their argument was abruptly paused by a bump in the road.

The driver glanced at them through his mirror, "Ara ara! We don't have to have any more mishaps, Mr. Abarai…and same to you, Mr. Kurosaki,"

The two averted their attention to the bus driver, both slightly surprised that he caught them. They then gruffly glared at each other before Abarai reluctantly let go of his grip on Ichigo.

"Tch, well she's almost here so I'll leave you to her," he shot him a dirty look before shifting back in his seat.

Ichigo furrowed his eyebrows slightly in response. _She?_ How tough could she be that the redhead even sent him a warning?

The bus finally came to a stop in front of a large gated residence and he heard the driver greet the student who was about to step into the bus. The chatter in the bus seemed to quiet down in response.

"Good morning, Ms. Kuchiki! You're looking as lovely as ever today,"

Curiosity getting the best of him, Ichigo looked up and studied the girl who just stepped in.

She was incredibly short. Her badge was placed perfectly on her sweater, which was devoid of any wrinkles. The same went for her skirt. And her collared shirt. Even her shoes seemed like they were just polished this morning.

He snorted. _Ah, a perfect example of the anal retentive type._

She ignored the driver and made her way down through the seats with no expression on her face. There was no mistake, she was a frigid bitch.

Ichigo had barely enough time to notice the numerous students focused on him when she appeared in front of him with a raised eyebrow.

"Excuse me, but you're in my seat."

So trouble came in a tiny, freaky, wide-violet-eyed girl. It seemed Kami had a dry sense of humor.

He made himself comfortable by resting his arm on the window and leaning into his hand, "…And?"

Her eyes slightly narrowed. She seemed like the type that never had anyone question her authority.

"I'd like you to get out of my seat and sit somewhere else." She pointed to the seats around them.

His eyes followed her finger. What was wrong with her? All the seats were occupied.

He grit his teeth, "If you haven't noticed, they're all taken. But I'm sure no one would mind sharing a seat with a midget like you, since you'd barely take up any space."

Ichigo watched the girl's nose flare up and eyes narrow even more. He could have been nice and moved but this brat was the type that wouldn't take 'no' for an answer, and that pissed him off. "What did you just call me?"

He heard a quiet "He's in for it now," in the seat in front of him, which sounded like pineapple head. However, before he could wonder how strong this tiny girl could seriously be, a voice piped up, "Um, Kuchiki-san, you can sit here if you want..." They both turned to see a scrawny, black haired guy smile meekly and gesture to the empty space next to him.

The girl was about to say something when the bus suddenly made a sharp turn into the school, and she tripped and fell back into his seat, her head bonking his chin as her face landed on his chest.

"GAH!"

"THE HELL?"

Crimson spread on both of their cheeks when they realized the position they were in. She dumbly stared at his chest in confusion while he grabbed his aching chin that her hard head hit. As the pain slowly went away, he realized that the girl's head was right under his chin and that her hand was holding onto his leg from trying to stop her fall. And that she was way too uncomfortably close. They stared at each other incredulously for a split second before simultaneously yelling, "MOVE!"

Fortunately, none of the students noticed their collision as they retreated out of the bus. The bus was already parked.

Pineapple stood in the walkway and slung his bookbag on, "Yo, Rukia! Let's go,"

Both of them glanced at him and then at the bus which was close to being emptied. As Ichigo glanced at the students leaving, she smacked her bookbag at his face, which caused Ichigo to bark a "What the hell?" at her.

She stood up and straightened her sweater and bookbag before leering at him with a serious tone, "That's for calling me a midget, you buffoon." With the final word, she followed pineapple out the bus.

Ichigo leered at her back, spitting out cusses under his breath as he grabbed his bookbag and slung it on.

"Um..." The black haired guy was still there, looking at him. _He was still there?_

Ichigo glanced at him and gruffly responded as he began to leave his seat, "Yeah?"

The guy rubbed the back of his head shyly, "You're the new transfer student, right?"

"Yeah."

"I'm Yamada Hanataro. Nice to meet you!"

"Kurosaki Ichigo. Same."

The guy followed him out of the bus as Ichigo ignored the stupid smile on the bus driver's face. What kind of a bus driver wore getas and a green striped hat? And how could the school even rely on a crappy driver like him? Meanwhile, the boy behind him was rambling on about something as they made their way to the school entrance. He caught a glimpse of the midget girl and the pineapple head entering the school, and his eyes narrowed in response.

Hanataro must have known what he was thinking about, "She's really not like that,"

He snorted, "Oh yeah? First day of school, and I get a welcome punch from that shorty," He knew he was being spiteful in front of the first person who actually welcomed him, but her arrogance pissed him off.

"Kuchiki-san is really kind! I've never really seen her act, um, that way to anyone,"

Ichigo let out a scoff, "So she doesn't treat everyone like the disease?" Hanataro didn't seem to catch his sarcasm as he simply nodded eagerly with a smile.

"Oh, I forgot to ask, what's your class?"

Ichigo took out the crumpled paper in his pocket and glanced at it, "3-1. You?"

Hanataro frowned, "Oh, I'm 3-2,"

The bell rang, and Hanataro slightly jumped, "Ah, we're going to be late! I'll see you later, Kurosaki!"

Ichigo scratched the back of his head as he watched Hanataro leave. The kid was really timid looking, but nevertheless, he was grateful for his friendliness. _Maybe not everyone's a stuck up, rich kid like that girl. Still, I miss being at Karakura. _

He sighed and opened the door to his class. All the students were already seated, and he felt slightly self-conscious when everyone's eyes turned to him.

"You must be the new transfer student. Kurosaki Ichigo, right?" He glanced at his new teacher- she was dark-skinned with purple hair. She had a slight smirk on her face with lively eyes.

"Uh, yeah," he replied. He walked over to her desk as she introduced him to the class. He glanced out the large window when he heard the teacher say something else to him, "We'll have our class representative help you get adjusted to our school this week. Ms. Kuchiki?" The teacher gestured to a girl, and he followed her hand to meet leering eyes. He quickly caught himself from leaving his jaw wide open in disbelief. It was the frigid bitch from the bus! Ichigo mentally face-palmed. This class could not get any worse!

He looked up when he heard a fake cheerful voice, "Welcome to our class, Kurosaki! My name is _Kuchiki_ Rukia. Please let me know if you have any questions!" The bitch was smiling at him while throwing him a piercing look with her eyes. He was appalled and threw away any reconsideration he had for her after Hanataro's determined speech. That girl was a lying, violent midget.

The teacher didn't seem to notice the deadly threats Rukia was sending him with her eyes as she motioned towards his new seat, "You can go ahead and take the seat behind Kuchiki, and she can fill you in with our current assignment."

He reluctantly made his way to his assigned seat as Rukia looked away, trying to hide her frustration as well. This was going to be a very, very long class.

* * *

Lunch seemed to be the only freedom he had so far. He sat in the shade outside, imagining the lunch he would have had with his friends if he were still at Karakura. Keigo would be spouting perverted nonsense, Chad would be sitting quietly, listening, and he'd probably be getting into an argument with Ishida. Although he didn't mind being by himself, it felt completely foreign and uncomfortable here at the new school.

Rukia barely uttered a word to him after class, which he didn't mind. She was such a fake, prissy teacher's pet. He only hoped that Kendo would at least turn out better than his first class had.

"Hey, Kurosaki," He looked up to see the tiny girl with an unhappy scowl on her face. _Her again?_

What the hell was she doing here after totally ignoring him earlier?

He put on a scowl that matched hers, "What do you want, midget?"

He could tell his insult still touched a nerve as he watched her close her eyes in an attempt to calm down, "It's _Kuchiki Rukia_ to you. I'm only here because you looked pathetic eating lunch by yourself, and I have to fulfill my duties as class representative."

He shot up from the tree he was leaning on, "_What? Pathetic?_"

She merely sat down across from him and dryly replied, "Really, Kurosaki, you need to stop being in such denial."

"Says the midget with the napoleon complex."

She kicked him in the shin.

"OW! BITCH!"

"What the hell is your problem? Seriousl-"Surprised by her lack of response, he gazed down to see her completely engrossed with his strawberry milk box.

"Hey idiot, what's this?" she pointed to his strawberry milk box.

He pointed to the logo on it, "It's strawberry milk, can't you read?"

She raised an eyebrow at him, "You drink strawberry milk in a box? And just when I thought you couldn't get any stranger…"

He pointed a finger at her angrily, "You're the one totally fascinated by it!"

She ignored him and obnoxiously brought the drink to his face, "Shut up. How do you open this drink?"

He raised an eyebrow but felt annoyed- she probably grew up with champagne and caviar or whatever. How spoiled could she get if she didn't even know what a milk carton was? He grabbed it from her with a sigh, "This is what you do. You take the straw and you push it down the hole on top of the box here," He demonstrated as she watched curiously. She swiftly grabbed his drink after he finished opening it and explaining.

"Hey!"

Too busy being captivated by his drink, she threw him her bottled sparkling water to shut him up. He caught it clumsily, surprised, and examined it. "Pe-rri-er… Wow, you're spoiled too,"

He studied the foreign drink for a second before removing the cap. Foreign drinks like this one were rare since they were imported from far away. Besides, he could get twelve different flavors at an old vending machine on the way home. He mentally shook his head. _She must be really loaded if she carries around a drink like this for lunch._

Meanwhile, Rukia brushed off his insult in order to more closely examine the cartoon strawberry image on the label. Awed at the cuteness, she wondered how a buffoon like him would drink something like this. Her eyes grew as she drank it, ignoring his insult, "Woah. This milk drink is really good!"

He gulped down a sip of the sparkling water before glancing in her direction. The girl who had just previously aggravated him to no end was now cradling his cheap milk carton with her hands with a pleasant expression on her face. With a resigned expression, he muttered, "I swear, you're like Jekyll and Hyde."

Once she noticed his resigned face, she spoke in a pleasant voice, "You know what, Kurosaki? I forgive you for sitting in my seat today."

* * *

"So you're the new Kendo student?" Ichigo unconsciously tilted his head back from his new teacher's intimidating eyes…and scar. He simply nodded.

His new teacher, Kenpachi, as they called him, was a giant. He was well over six feet tall, with spiky hair and a long scar that ran over one eye. Ichigo silently hoped he would never have to go against him. And he swore he didn't want to know how his sensei got that scar.

Kenpachi circled Ichigo like a predator to his prey, "Well, you're kind of scrawny for kendo, aren't ya?"

Before Ichigo could even reply, Kenpachi smacked him roughly on the back, "Alright then, let's see what you got, shrimp!"

"Abarai! Front and center!"

_Abarai? Shit. Not that kid again!_ Ichigo watched pineapple head stroll up to the center of the mat with a smirk plastered on his face.

Abarai put on his mask and went into position, "Better pray long and hard to live 'cause I'm gonna kick your ass,"

"We'll see about that," Ichigo muttered calmly before putting on his mask as well.

The two eagerly dived into the duel as soon as Kenpachi allowed it to begin. Ichigo struggled under Abarai's strong grip- each hit was full of polished strength, which wasn't surprising coming from a private school kid like him. Ichigo had been the best at his old dojo, but he found himself working up a sweat beating this guy. Chants of Abarai's name surrounded the two, which only fueled his determination to win. He dodged a hit from Abarai and struck back without delay. Their feet danced swiftly on the mat, the clashing of their shinais echoing in the dojo.

Pineapple head may have had some lame private school polished moves and an advantage in a few inches, but Ichigo knew he had the upper hand in making swift moves to shake his opponent off. The two rivals felt the reverberation of their shinais against each other as they both edged back and forth. He barely had a chance to counter when Abarai's shinai struck down on his with brutal power. _Damn, his hits are pretty strong. But I've got the lead in agility…I just need to find a small opening and I just might beat this guy._

His eyes quickly scanned Abarai's movements, searching desperately for a movement that would leave him open. Finally discovering a tiny open spot in Abarai, Ichigo quickly struck with all the raw power he could muster and was close to forcing his competition into submission when Kenpachi ended the duel. He already seemed to have come to a conclusion.

The two reluctantly took off their masks, panting. Ichigo was slightly frustrated- why did Kenpachi have to stop the duel right when he was about to win? Although he _did_ end with the upper hand, which meant it was pretty much his victory.

They sent each other fierce looks as they bowed to each other with little respect. Kenpachi came over and chortled, "Well, looks like I was wrong, Kurosaki. You may be pretty scrawny with some rough moves, but you're quick on your feet, kid,"

He turned to Abarai, "Good work, Abarai. Though, it looks like you've got some new competition now,"

Abarai turned away with a slight scowl on his face. Ichigo grinned slightly to himself, relishing the victory as he left the mat. He sat back on the window ledge, catching his breath as Kenpachi grabbed two other opponents and pushed them to the center of the mat for a duel.

Abarai approached him with his hands in his pockets with a wary look, "Guess you ain't so bad,"

Ichigo looked up, a smirk slowly making its way to his face, "Same goes for you."

Abarai reached out his hand while looking away to the side, "I suppose it'd be better if we're civil since we're in the same dojo and all. Abarai Renji,"

He returned the greeting, slapping his hand, "Kurosaki Ichigo."

"Don't get too comfortable now because I'm gonna kick your ass in a rematch later!"

Ichigo scoffed, " Guess you're still achin for another beating, pineapple,"

"Tch, you just got lucky that I was going easy on you this time, since you're new and all,"

"Yo, Abarai!" The two turned back to see a bald guy and a pretty boy. The two guys approaching them seemed older and were contrasts of each other. He was _bald,_ for crying out loud. If that wasn't enough already to show off his toughness, his narrowed eyes were, along with his tight grip on his shinai. The other had on a playful expression with lazy eyes, as he brushed his shiny black hair back.

Abarai grinned at them in response, "Hey Ikkaku, Yumichika."

Ikkaku snickered, "So, this the kid you nearly got your ass kicked by?"

Abarai glared at him with his arms crossed, "Shut up!"

Ichigo smirked and entered the conversation, "Yeah, that's me."

Ikkaku merely stretched his arms, "You're not that bad for a public school kid. Though I wonder how you'd fare against me, _Kurosaki._"

Yumichika finally spoke up with a mischievous half-grin, "I wouldn't underestimate him, Ikkaku. He seems to have a pretty solid grip on things if he did that well against Abarai here,"

"Hey you four slackers! The hell you think yer doing? Get your asses over here and start practicing!" They glanced back to see Kenpachi at the center of the mat with his shinai dangerously positioned towards them.

Ikkaku furrowed his eyebrows, "Shit, Captain calls. Let's go,"

* * *

Ichigo groaned as he grabbed an empty seat on the bus. School was _finally _over. He didn't know how he got through it. His body ached in too many places- though he preferred his old dojo over Seireitei, he had to admit that he had his work cut out if he wanted to catch up with the other kendoka at Seireitei. He gripped his shoulder. That damn Abarai's hit was a pain.

But it wasn't only the dojo that gave him pain. His new science teacher, Kurotsutchi, was a _complete_ psycho. He learned right away that Kurotsuchi was one of those teachers who took pleasure in mentally torturing his students. Stupid Rukia had to call out and inform Kurotsutchi that it was his first day there. He almost crumbled up his paper when he saw the evil snicker she gave him before turning back to face the front. Thanks to her, the rest of class was a nightmare, with Kurotsutchi paying particular attention to him. _Forgiveness, my ass._ She was evil as evil could get, if evil liked strawberry milk.

His Japanese Literature teacher was a bit of a weirdo as well, with some stupid patterned pink shawl draped over him like a hippie. And it didn't help that he called the secretary, "Miss Nanaoooo", over a million times during class and flirted with her unabashedly.

Along with his new Kendo teacher, Kenpachi, he decided that this new school was full of loons who just happened to be rich. Like that shorty, Rukia. Hell, even his bus driver was a nut! The only people who didn't seem like such a nutcase was his own homeroom teacher (although _she_ also had her moments too, like gulping down that tall bottle of milk during break) and the headmaster, Ukitake. Even though he looked really frail and coughed every other moment or so.

"Ah, Kurosaki!" He glanced up to see Hanataro stepping over to join him.

"Hey," he replied back. Hanataro rested his bookbag on the floor as he began to chat about the day. Ichigo noticed Rukia coming through the walkway with Renji right behind her. Her face was the same as the first time he saw her- no smile, and eyebrows slightly furrowed in thought.

Renji seemed to be talking to her and grinning. He noticed Ichigo and slightly waved with a "Yo," which Ichigo responded back to, though his eyes quickly trailed back to Rukia who had just noticed him. She merely narrowed her eyes at him, which he scowled back at in reply.

"Hi Kuchiki, Abarai!" Hanataro smiled at them in response, oblivious to the scowl on both Rukia and Ichigo's face.

Her face immediately softened as she smiled at him, taking her seat as Renji took his in front of hers, "Hello,"

Ichigo looked away with his scowl still on his face, annoyed by her fake sweetness. _Seriously, that girl's got multiple personalities or something. _He couldn't wait to go home- he knew Chad and the rest of the gang were waiting for him to give them the details on Seireitei. And he'd give them all the details, all right. Starting with the midget.


	2. Fitting In

**Chapter two**

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The first few weeks since Kurosaki Ichigo's arrival at Seireitei passed by swiftly. Rukia believed it was because of the stream of new chores and obligations that came along with babysitting Kurosaki. He was aloof and quiet in class for the most part, but annoyingly loud and obnoxious around her. So he wasn't the friendliest guy around. And that was an understatement, what with the permanent scowl on his face. Nevertheless, the students in her class took a liking to him, which she wouldn't understand in a million years. Was it because of his flashy orange hair, or because they didn't feel intimidated by him because he was previously just a public school student? In her book, he was still an annoying, uncouth, and ill-tempered idiot.

On the other hand, deep, deep, _deep_ down, she found herself slightly envious of him. Nobody in class treated him cautiously because of his status- hell, _because_ of his background, they all treated him normally. And barely anyone looked down on him because of the huge contribution he gave as an addition to the Kendo team. But for her, nobody even dared to oppose her nomination as class representative (set mostly by the teachers). She wondered if this favor that she had was actually a curse in disguise.

"Oi, Rukia,"

Oh Kami, that damn strawberry now even got inside her head from being around him for too long, too much. She was losing it. She needed immediate withdrawal- no, his immediate emigration.

"Oi, MIDGET,"

She returned her focus back to the active classroom just in time to dodge a crumbled paper ball. They had all separated into groups for their current project. She whipped her head back to study the ball for a second before glaring at the guilty orange-haired idiot who was busy trying to hide his red hands by attempting to force a stupid conversation with Renji. To Rukia's satisfaction, Renji didn't take pity on the paper ball culprit.

"My name is _Kuchiki,_ you fool,"

She caught his attention, even though he was slightly sniggering and brought up a hand to point accusingly at her, "But you still answered to _midget_, midget."

"I _did not_ directly respond to that. I was simply trying to make one last attempt at ramming the correct way to address me into your empty head."

Ichigo's scowl deepened as his eyes narrowed. She couldn't help but take another stab at him- provoking this guy was too easy, "But I suppose I'm to blame. I should have realized something like that would be too complicated for you to remember,"

Triumph flashed in her eyes. _Any last words, Kurosaki?_

"Actually, it's a bad habit of mine. I just can't help but say nothing but the truth,"

She gripped her desk, thoroughly aggravated. This guy was so annoying! "Tch, more like a whole bunch of nonsense, you orange-haired imbecile!"

Ichigo followed her movements with more aggressiveness, "Try saying that again, you mentally deranged bitch!"

Renji crossed his arms and shook his head slightly. It wasn't even a month since Ichigo came, and they were already arguing as if their lives (more like their prides) depended on it. Foolish bastard. Although, he had to admit- he had never seen anyone single-handedly get under Rukia's skin like Ichigo. He was surprised at how easily Rukia had opened up to Ichigo- she was a tough nut to crack. He wondered if Ichigo even knew about her brother. He doubted it, which made him slightly uneasy. Ichigo would be in for some major ass kicking if he turned out to be a coward and treated Rukia differently after finding out her status. But there was something about Ichigo and he sincerely hoped that he had the same integrity he had in practicing Kendo.

Even he had been guilty back then for blindly following everyone's opinion of Rukia. His main focus had always been Kendo so he had never bothered to really get to know her. All he knew from observing her was that she was soft-spoken and distant; it was rare to catch her with a smile. People were intimidated by her and having a cold, detached brother only encouraged the idea that she was the same. It took a whole semester of being tutored by her back in middle school for them to start the relationship that they were in right now.

He and Hinamori glanced at the two, anticipating another round of insults to be fiercely ping-ponged back. Oddly already adjusted to it, they continued with their work while sharing some of the concentration on the two arguing. It wouldn't be long before a temporary winner came out of the battle.

Rukia met his eyes fearlessly and made sure to draw out her words slowly, "You're an orange haired im-be-cile."

Attempting to end the argument quickly and cleanly, Hinamori released an awkward laugh and patted Ichigo who was dangerously close to standing up and shooting fireballs from his eyes, "Okay, guys! Let's get back to work or Shihoin sensei will beat us up for it,"

_Ah, right._ Rukia felt a little embarrassed- she was supposed to be setting a good example as class representative, but being around that fool made her stoop to his level. The four of them were supposed to be working on a project for Modern Japanese. Technically, it was supposed to be just the three of them- her, Hinamori, and Renji. She liked it that way. The three of them made a good team because of their well built relationship with each other. She had met Hinamori through Renji and student council. But since Ichigo arrived in the middle of the project, he joined their group. Rukia then remembered Ukitake sensei's words, "_Rukia,_ _I know I can count on you in helping Kurosaki become more adjusted to our school."_

Oh, yeah. As much as that orange haired weirdo got on her nerves, she knew she needed to respect Ukitake's request. Well, as much as she could handle. She didn't mind the tasks that came with being class representative and she had helped new students around before, but this kid was definitely an aberration. She knew it from the moment she saw him in her seat on the bus with a deeply ingrained scowl on his face. Which she learned was pretty much glued to his face twenty-four seven. And who had orange hair? Although she couldn't really say much since Renji's hair wasn't your typical black either. The way he wore his uniform even annoyed her- it screamed rebellious as the arms of his sweater were rolled up and his tie was almost always slightly crooked and loose. Not to mention the shirt he always wore under his collared shirt.

She never had someone get so quickly under her skin before, and it intrigued and slightly scared her at the same time. She already knew what everyone thought of her- she was nice but distant and impossible to open up. Though, it didn't bother her that much even if it meant she had many more acquaintances than friends. She couldn't help being distant- her brother owned the school, which meant that everyone tended to put up a face in front of her. For the most part, everyone was nice to her, but feared getting too close to her. She never really had any enemies because of her status, although she wasn't deaf to the hushed talks about her. The feeling of being excluded was sure to never dissipate as long as she had expectations as a Kuchiki to uphold.

She watched Hinamori show Ichigo their progress so far while he nodded, his face softer than it was in their spat moments ago. Renji teased Ichigo about the huge workload that he was going to get since he came in the middle of the project, and Ichigo seamlessly shot back a retort. They had somehow gotten along quickly, though she wasn't too surprised since they were in the same Kendo team. Not to mention, their eagerness to bark at anyone and prove themselves also helped fuel their slight friendship. (She knew they wouldn't admit that they were friends just yet.)

Her train of thought was abruptly cut off when she heard Ichigo's loud voice, "_She_ drew this?"

Hinamori and Renji's faces slightly paled as their eyes steered clear from hers. They prayed that they would get through class without round two.

Rukia's eyes trailed over to what his hands were holding- her drawings for the project. She leaned over and snatched her drawing, "_Yes, _I drew this_._ Do you have a problem with that?"

Ichigo just looked at her blankly and pointed at her drawing, "Yeah. Why do you draw so crappy?"

"You idiot…" Renji muttered as Hinamori glanced over at Shihoin sensei nearby nervously. Rukia twitched in response.

Ichigo's face was greeted viciously by her textbook. "OW!"

"GEEZ, MIDGET!"

Ichigo swore there was steam coming out of her nostrils. He was surprised by her sudden sensitivity but made sure to note this as her weakness. He cradled his nose as he muttered, "Violent…crazy…bitch..."

She placed a threatening hand on her textbook again and was about to respond to his muttering when Shihoin sensei strolled over, her eyes slightly slanted.

"How's this group coming along? Was it just my imagination or did I see a textbook fly around here?" Shihoin sensei gripped Ichigo's shoulder tightly, and Rukia wanted to snicker at his face slightly paling. Shihoin sensei was very laidback, but it didn't mean that she didn't know how to keep them in their place. Rukia secretly believed that Shihoin sensei liked doing just that, actually. And for that particular moment, she was glad that her sensei had slightly violent tendencies in doing so.

Hinamori came to the rescue, as usual. She was good at fixing situations like these, "Ah, no, sensei! We were just explaining to Kurosaki about our project. And, uh, Kurosaki got a little carried away studying his new textbook,"

Rukia, Renji, and Hinamori knew Shihoin saw through them, but they also knew that she'd let it slide when a small smile appeared on her face. At least, for now. Their assumption was accurate as Shihoin just snorted at Hinamori's response. She then flashed the group a smile that looked all too suspicious and patted Hinamori on the shoulder while loosening her grip on Ichigo, "Alright, then. Ah, Kurosaki, if you're so interested in our textbook, please feel free to come to me sometime- I have a _plethora_ of textbooks for class that I think you'd enjoy." He only nodded at her from fear of her tightening his shoulder painfully again.

Once she left, Hinamori let out a sigh of relief, "Thank Kami. You should have seen her when she was walking over- she looked like she was about to bust someone's head with her ruler,"

Renji smirked and gestured to Ichigo, "Yeah, well if it weren't for that damn loudmouth over there…"

Rukia leaned back comfortably in her seat, "Well, what can we do? He's hopeless." Her comment earned her a fist bump from Renji as Hinamori shook her head with a tiny smile, surrendering to the fact that these two were always going to be at each others' throats.

Oddly enough, Rukia also almost found herself faintly smiling when she felt his eyes drilling holes into hers with rage.

* * *

Rukia shoved her history notes carelessly into Ichigo's hands, "Here."

He glanced at her notes, "Thanks."

"I better have them back before next Wednesday, or else I'll make sure you fail your first history exam."

Ichigo merely nodded off her threat as he skimmed through her notes. Her handwriting was small (no surprise there) and looked like a messy attempt at girliness. It reminded him of her lame 'Model Student' acting, when really she was a vicious wolf. He paused at one page into her notes- the first few notes had seemed fairly neat and organized. However, the neatness slowly deteriorated as the page he was currently examining had doodles in the margin of the paper and in between words, "…Are those _Chappy _doodles?"

He was even more certain of her true wolf identity now.

She knitted her eyebrows in irritation, "They're helpful reminders,"

He scoffed, "In what, reminding you of your unhealthy obsession with bunnies?"

She crossed her arms in a challenging pose, "Beggars can't be choosers,"

"_Normal_ people act their age,"

"_Normal _people don't frown all the time,"

She grinned triumphantly when he scowled even deeper at that. Arguing with that kid wouldn't be as satisfying if she couldn't kick him off his throne once in a while. "Well at least…" Ichigo trailed off when he noticed that the students around them had quickly retreated to either side of the hallway.

Rukia and Ichigo both turned around when they heard some voices exclaim, "It's President Kuchiki!"

Byakuya Kuchiki entered the hallway and he was followed by two other affluent men beside him. His presence stopped all the motion in the hallway. He was dressed in a black, tasteful suit with his hands placed neatly in his pockets. All the students had their heads slightly bowed as he glided effortlessly through. His face was stoic as usual, his hair slightly flying away in the opposite direction from his quick paced walking.

Rukia promptly bowed when he passed her without throwing a glance in her direction. Byakuya didn't visit the school very often, so she was honestly surprised to see him. After he left and the hallway became scattered with students again, she finally lifted up her head to notice Ichigo looking dumbfounded.

She sighed contemptuously, "I don't know what's worse. Your annoying frown or you looking stupider than usual." But Ichigo barely paid attention as he pointed to her, raising an eyebrow.

"Is…that guy related to you?"

Rukia suddenly turned slightly red, uncomfortable. She never thought he would ask her about him. Hell, in a way, she thought he already knew. Talk like that spread easy. _How slow is this guy?_ _No wonder he acted so brashly around me; he had no idea._ It wasn't that she was acting conceited, but the fact that most of the students at school treated her cautiously caused her to immediately assume that he would too. "Um…" she looked away, dreading the fact that she had to explain and watch his response, "he's my brother,"

His face contorted into disbelief as he erupted, "WHAT?"

She self-consciously glanced around the hallway as she hissed, "Shut up!"

"Nobody tells me anything…" He muttered to himself.

Her eyes met his defiantly as she crossed her arms defensively, "Don't tell me you're already regretting treating me like trash since day one…coward!"

She expected him to scratch his head and look guilty, but he simply snorted, "Yeah, right…I don't care who your brother is, you're still a psychotic midget in my book,"

That should have earned him a stealthy punch in the stomach and she even noticed his grip on his books slightly harden in anticipation. But strangely, his words just now felt as though all the negativity was filtered out; she was only pleasantly surprised by his response. She didn't respond as she quietly pondered over why she was pleased to hear his words while he scratched his head, his eyes shifting away.

In a way, Ichigo wasn't completely shocked. He had been aware that she was much wealthier than the rest of the students at school. And the air of tense formality students projected around Rukia didn't escape his notice either. He knew that she probably belonged to an important family, but never did he ever fathom that her own brother owned the school. He wondered why she didn't simply have private tutors instead of demoting herself to a simple student at her brother's school. Her guarded personality made sense- he of all people could understand that the best. He, too, had been labeled in the past because of his hair, and he knew how impossible it was to erase biased and shallowly based opinions….But of course in no way did that mean he'd go any easier or soft on her because of that little similarity.

Ichigo began to feel a quiet tension from lack of arguing. He wasn't sure what to say when she was quiet like that, not arguing back.

"I was just speechless because you guys are so disturbingly similar. Now I know why you're such an ice queen,"

He slightly shook his head as he muttered, "Tch, with a brother like him…"

Unfortunately for Rukia, the filtering had stopped. Her eyes swiftly climbed up to burn a hole into his face, "What did you just say?"

The stupid coward wasn't even meeting her eyes on purpose.

Ichigo sighed loudly, boldly ignoring her as he rubbed the back of his neck, "Man, you're so short you can't even hear what I'm saying..."

Before Rukia could grab the rest of her dignity and smack the airhead with all her might, he speedily ditched her for Renji who had just entered the hallway, blaming his haste on a fear of tardiness.

"Yeah, right." She muttered darkly.

She was going to kill him, she declared to herself with her fists tightly wound. _And it won't matter how many strawberry milk boxes he brings as a peace offering. _

_

* * *

_

The school day slipped by quickly, even with the embarrassing lab disaster in Kurotsuchi's class caused by her lab partner and the pop quiz in Literature class that she was sure that everyone bombed, including her. Although, there was that quiet confident look on Ichigo's face as he passed up his quiz to her to hand in. Track and the discussion in the student council meeting about the upcoming school festival were probably the main reasons why the school day didn't seem as long. The school festival consumed her mind for the majority of the day, as she made several mental lists about the booths and responsibilities her class had for the festival.

They usually had prizes for the most successful booths, one which her class had won their first year, with baked goods made famously by Hinamori. They had won a field trip to Pocky World, an amusement park nearby. However, they were later taken over by upperclassmen like Rangiku Matsumoto one year with her cookie bars guaranteed to increase your breast size. Even though they didn't win after their first year, they always had a steady stream of students so they stuck loyally to their baked goods booth.

Rukia wouldn't admit it out loud or even in her thoughts, but another reason why the day went by quickly was due to the bickering with that orange haired idiot. She could feel an evil grin slowly making its way across her face as she replayed the satisfying punch she gave Ichigo when he insulted her for the umpteenth time that day. That punch nearly risked not having her daily strawberry milk, as Ichigo was spitefully rigid in not trading his strawberry milk with her, but it didn't really matter since she stole it from him anyway. He ended up with the greater loss- it cost him her sparkling water.

Sometimes that idiot just didn't know- actually, he never did and physical pain seemed to be the only way to get him to understand anything. She didn't mind, though.

"Welcome home, Miss Rukia!"

She sent a small smile to the maid who bowed in her presence. In the past, she had been dropped off from school by a chauffeur, but she was uncomfortable with the fact that it clearly distinguished her from the other students. She remembered the first time she rode the bus- people just stared while a few verbally lashed out while she wasn't looking. But she could hear. That lonely seat in the back had been hers since the first time, and she liked that it magically made her nearly invisible and fit in with the crowd of students. After a while, Renji soon joined her in the seat in front, keeping her company and taking away the feeling of alienation.

Then, it seemed that fate was tired of her sitting in her comfort zone and decided to throw in an orange haired loudmouth who stole her seat without any remorse. Life seemed to be spinning again.

She glanced around her tastefully decorated home, which while lovely as it appeared, seemed hollow and too quiet. Reaching her room, she dropped her bookbag and flopped tiredly onto her bed. A train of thoughts began to steam through her head about homework and the upcoming projects due, as well as the time she would have to spend after school working on the booth.

She left her bedroom and entered the hallway towards the family shrine. She knew Byakuya would be there- it was a habit of his to visit during the afternoon, and she watched him pray silently. After finishing, he turned around, feeling her presence.

"I've come home, brother,"

He nodded slightly and returned his attention to the shrine, "How was your day?"

"It was good,"

He didn't respond, but she knew he heard. She watched him gracefully light incense as the smoke gradually dissipated away.

"I hope that everything went well at school today, brother,"

He nodded in response, "Yes, it did,"

"I expect you'll go and complete your homework now?"

She nodded to his back, "Yes,"

"I'll see you at dinner, then,"

She nodded in acknowledgement and bowed before leaving. Their daily conversations seemed short and vapid, as he only brought up what he needed to know or to inform in conversations, but there was more to their relationship than that.

To her, he was the closest connection she had to her sister. He was the thread to the family she lost. And it didn't matter if anyone saw his character as cold and distant. She knew better than that, and she never resented him for any of it. She was grateful to him- there was care in his voice, in his actions, as subtle as it was. It was there, even against the once strongly disapproving eyes of the rest of the Kuchiki clan. Sometimes she could tell he was restraining countless things, such as his emotions because of the role he had as head of the Kuchiki clan, and at times it led her to feel like a burden to him. Maybe if she wasn't there, would his problems decrease significantly?

She stepped out to her porch to start on her homework. It was the only place that seemed to be lively in this vast mansion, with the soft swishing of the koi in the pond, the garden basking in the sunlight, and the birds chirping. It was relaxing.

Rukia quietly smiled when she noticed a pillow and a small table set out, along with a petite tea set and crackers. An example of his thoughtfulness. Nothing but admiration for him welled up inside her at the sight.

* * *

The girls in the group sighed. It was after school and Rukia and Hinamori had formed their band of fellow students for their baked goods booth. Which was mostly girls. The boys in the class had other tasks such as building the booth, so the baking was left to the girls. They were all raring to go, but exhausted on new ideas. If they wanted any chance to win the prize, which was a field trip for their class, they needed something unique and special. They had already decided to create character and cute animal shaped cookies, such as Chappy the Bunny (which Rukia eagerly supported), but they needed to raise the cuteness factor if they really wanted to attract customers.

"What're we going to do? At this rate, we'll probably lose to Rangiku and her big boobs!"

"Is she selling those bars again?"

"Ow! What, I was just curious! Those bars really kind of worked, I think…"

"No way! Those bars that supposedly enhance your boobs to look like hers didn't work! They just tasted like utter fat,"

"She's not doing the bars again,"

The girls averted their attention to Rukia and Hinamori who had worried expressions on their faces.

Hinamori slightly cringed, "Well, in the student council meeting, she was asking if it were okay to have a kissing…booth."

Groans echoed in response, "So? Did they actually approve of it?"

"Well…you know how the student council has more guys than girls,"

"Even Toushiro, who's senior class president?"

Rukia pointed her finger up, glad to be the bearer of good news, "He was the only male who disapproved."

A wave of approving sighs followed, "That's Toushiro for you. Ever the gentlemanly prince,"

Rukia strived dutifully to keep her mouth shut when she saw Hinamori's expression sour. Hinamori and Toushiro had known each other since forever, and while Hinamori was the type who got along well with just about everyone, she was slightly different with Toushiro. Her nose would slightly flare, her eyes would liven up, and she would gain an air of aggressiveness. Rukia imagined that Toushiro probably wasn't the same composed class president to her as he was to everyone else.

"Ah! I've got it!" Rukia switched her focus to one of the girls who snapped her fingers with a giddy smile.

"What about a costume? We could have someone dress up as Chappy!"

"A costume? How is that going to go against Rangiku's _kissing_ booth?"

"Oh shut it, at least that's not a bad idea!"

"Yeah! And then we could have people take pictures with him,"

"Him? So you've already decided that it's going to be a boy?"

"Well _I _don't want to wear that heavy and sweaty costume! Plus, aren't they huge on us?"

"Yeah, and it better be a boy so we can rake in so many more customers!"

One of the girls released a disapproving sigh, "But what guy is going to wear it? Most of the guys are already busy,"

"Hm…well maybe I could get my boyfriend to wear it?"

"Kenji? But he's kind of short…"

One of the girls slyly whispered to her friend, "He's not that cute either,"

Hinamori glanced at one of the girls lazily leaning on her desk, "Hey Yuki, do you think your brother might be interested?"

Yuki scoffed, shaking her head, "No way. Even though he'd fit in the costume, he's only a sophomore. There's no way he would want to when he has his own thing,"

Hinamori tapped her pen against her mouth, contemplating, "There's got to be someone who could wear it…"

Just then, the classroom door opened, and in walked in the answer to their prayers.

Rukia stopped swinging her legs on the desk and raised an eyebrow at the intruder, "Kurosaki?"

He was dressed in his Kendo outfit probably due to after school practice, while his bookbag was slung on one shoulder. He seemed surprised to see the classroom full of only girls, but his surprise quickly disappeared, "Yo."

"What're you doing here?" Hinamori inquired as she stepped aside for him to reach his desk. Simultaneously, the girls stared at him, a predatory grin gradually making its way across their faces.

Oblivious to the girls, he pulled out his textbook and folder from his desk, "Forgot this,"

One of the girls piped up while he carelessly stuck the materials in his bookbag, "Kurosaki, are you working in a booth for the festival?"

He wrinkled his forehead, wondering where she was going along with this as suspicion soon followed from the creepy grins targeted at him, "No…"

Realized dawned on him too late. He was in a classroom full of girls, along with Rukia Kuchiki as their leader. Anything with Rukia as commander lead to him suffering at their hands. How could he not have realized? This was a perilous situation; he was stepping on shattered glass. He could hear the sound of his jet of dignity crashing down.

_MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY KUROSAKI ICHIGO_

He needed to get out of here immediately. Where was the door? Dammit, if only Renji had come with him!

He reluctantly lifted his eyes to see the girls studying him like he was their dinner, "Well, Kurosaki…"


	3. Stolen Identity

**Chapter Three**

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* * *

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* * *

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Ichigo liked to think of himself as a cool, laidback guy who wasn't concerned with people's opinions. He saw himself as one of those guys who kept his distance and didn't reveal much. You know, like that "I don't give a shit" attitude, with your hands shoved down your pockets and a lazy slouch. But how in the hell was he supposed to be able to keep up that rep if trouble attached itself to him like an eager parasite?

Girls were trouble. Well, girls his age. He began to realize that here at Seireitei High. At Karakura High, he had adjusted to their capricious and complicated minds. Besides Honsho, who was probably one of the creepiest girls he had ever met, most of the girls at Karakura were tolerable, such as Inoue. Even though she was the type of girl you wanted to cringe and constantly worry about because she was so ditzy and clumsy, she was nice. Hell, even his first elementary school friend, Tatsuki, was a girl. But then again, he sometimes forgot she was a girl.

So, maybe girls in general weren't that much trouble. But he could pinpoint exactly what his current trouble was. That trouble was less than five feet with an odd predilection for bunnies but was not to be taken lightly. Because of that particular trouble, he found himself dressing up as Chappy the Bunny for the school festival. He honestly didn't know how it all happened. One moment he was walking into the classroom to get his belongings, and the next, he signed himself up for a trip to reputation destruction.

Rukia threw him an icy glare during lunch to help her clarification, "Don't think I'm behind all this, because I'm not. It was unanimous against _my _vote. I'm just about excited as you are,"

He rolled his eyes at her while shoving rice into his mouth bitterly, "Oh, _thanks_, it makes it all better now that I know you weren't behind it,"

She narrowed her eyes at him while pointing her drink threateningly at him, "You don't deserve to dress up as Chappy!"

He muttered mostly to himself in disbelief, "I actually agree with you."

He glanced at his drink in her hands. They had fallen into the habit of switching drinks during lunch, which he didn't mind. Strawberry milk didn't exactly go well with bento, but Yuzu (who packed everyone's lunch) and Rukia both didn't seem to mind the strange pairing. Yuzu managed food in the house, so whatever she packed, the family would eat. He remembered a while back when he first opposed the drink. Yuzu was indignant while his dad attempted to show the brighter side of it to Ichigo, ardently complimenting Yuzu on her sweet innocence and how adorable she was for still being attached to strawberry milk. He wondered what it would be like if Yuzu found out that he had been trading his strawberry milk with a midget girl from school who also happened to like Chappy the Bunny.

"If you even dare slander Chappy's image, I'll make sure the whole school knows who to blame for ruining Ch- " Ichigo shoved a broccoli into Rukia's mouth and her eyes widened in surprise. If word got out that he was going to be dressed as Chappy at the school festival, he would cease to exist in society.

Trying to keep his cool, he nodded at Hinamori and Renji who were walking over, "Yo,"

Renji scratched his head, a perplexed expression on his face, "Did you just feed Rukia?"

Ichigo looked away and angrily replied, "No, why the hell would I feed her?"

Renji smirked, "Yeah, guess you're right. The only reason for that would be to shut her up,"

Also suspicious, Hinamori examined Rukia before plopping down next to her. Rukia was about to pipe up with an explanation but remembered the foreign vegetable in her mouth.

Rukia's attention averted to the two who just joined them as she realized that they were the reason for Ichigo's sudden broccoli attack. She slightly grinned mischievously to herself when she discovered she had a hold over Ichigo, although she didn't understand how he could be so embarrassed to dress up as Chappy. Aware of the bitter broccoli confrontation that soon awaited her, she cringed while eating it and contemplated spitting it in Ichigo's face. But knowing that she would get her revenge soon enough, she opted to throw her empty strawberry milk carton at his face instead, which elicited an angry scowl from him.

* * *

Ichigo grinned as the soda can obediently flew into the wastebasket, "Andd it's in again! Try and beat that, Abarai!"

It was after school before clubs began, and Ichigo was currently stuck doing his routinely classroom chores. He and Renji had thought the same thing when they saw neglected trash and a wastebasket near the entrance of the classroom door because they were now competing to get the most hoops.

Renji reached over and picked up a plastic bottle near the hall window and turned his back on the wastebasket, "Tch, I'll dunk it in without even looking,"

The bottle flew in the direction of the wastebasket but only kissed the edge of the basket before landing on the ground as Ichigo shook his head, laughing, "What was that again? You'll beat me without even looking?"

Renji turned around to see the plastic bottle near the wastebasket, slightly scowling, "That was practice, you ass,"

Ichigo merely sniggered before jogged over to retrieve the plastic bottle before stepping away to correct Renji's miss. Renji stood on the side, poorly attempting to disturb his focus. Unhindered by Renji's teasing, Ichigo shot, anxiously waiting for the bottle to fall into the basket. However, there was no sound of a dunk, for Rukia had popped outside the classroom and caught it.

Renji snickered loudly once he noticed Rukia with the bottle and Ichigo with a crestfallen expression, "Dumbass, you didn't even get it in yourself!"

After hearing that, Rukia promptly threw the bottle at Renji, who cradled his nose, "Ah! What the hell, Rukia?"

Ichigo wisely held in his snicker as he watched Rukia glare at Renji before sending him a glare as well, "You two are supposed to be picking up trash and sweeping the floor, not playing around with it like a couple of elementary school kids,"

Her reprimanding prompted Ichigo and Renji to peek inside their classroom where sure enough, a few other classmates were straightening up the desks and sweeping the floor.

Rukia pushed the two back outside into the hallway and explained before confused looks appeared on their faces, "We're out of cleaning solution for the windows, so go ask the upperclassmen. Hitsugaya will probably have some extras,"

Renji nodded dutifully before pulling Ichigo with him, "Alright, miss _class rep_,"

And with that, they proceeded down the hall in search of Hitsugaya's classroom. Rukia slightly grimaced at Renji's teasing before stepping back into the classroom as well.

Ichigo followed Renji down the hall with his hands stuffed in his pockets, "Who's Hitsugaya?"

Renji turned back to look at Ichigo while walking, "He's our class president. You know, that guy with the white, spiky hair?"

Ichigo furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, Renji's explanation ineffective in jogging his memory.

Renji dismissed it with a wave, "Yeah, well, you'll see him soon enough."

"Hitsugaya?" Renji and Ichigo peered into the classroom to see Hitsugaya lecturing a bored looking blond girl resting her breasts on the top of a chair. They scanned the classroom to notice Ikkaku sweeping the floor while Yumichika sat on the ledge of a desk.

"Yo, Abarai, Kurosaki."

The class president turned around mid-lecture to see Renji and Ichigo waving to Ikkaku and Yumichika while the blond beauty also curiously poked her head out behind Hitsugaya.

"Oh, Abarai. What do you need?"

Before Renji could reply, the blond female got up and approached the two, particularly Ichigo, "Ah, so you're the new student! Kurosaki Ichigo, right?"

Ichigo leaned back from her close proximity, slightly uncomfortable. With his eyes fleeing away her far too revealing uniform, he nodded, "Yeah. Who're you?"

Unbothered by his blunt reply, she grinned devilishly, "I'm Matsumoto Rangiku. So I finally get to meet you!"

She then peered in to his face, her eyebrows slightly furrowed, "You really do frown as much as they say,"

Ichigo scowled even deeper while Matsumoto giggled, amused.

Annoyed, Hitsugaya thrust a broomstick into her hand, cutting off her amusement with her latest toy, "Stop wasting time and go back to cleaning, Matsumoto."

The two, slightly red in the face, watched her leave with a reluctant sigh. Renji cleared his throat before speaking again, "We're all out of cleaning solution for the windows. Rukia said you might have some extras,"

Hitsugaya nodded before uncrossing his arms, "I think we might have one left. Wait here,"

The two nodded as Ikkaku and Yumichika approached them.

"You ready for practice today?"

His competitiveness suddenly in gear, Ichigo replied with a confident grin, "If you mean kicking your asses, then yeah,"

Ikkaku laughed all too knowingly, "We'll see how you'll manage that, Kurosaki,"

Renji also snorted, his arms crossed. Ichigo would have it in for him today- Kenpachi took special care in making sure newly joined rookies caught up with the rest. He remembered the first few weeks of Kendo were memories that he would never want to relive. And soon, Ichigo would be feeling the same.

* * *

Kenpachi was insane.

Ichigo sighed and glanced at the storage room, which was a complete mess. It wasn't that Ichigo was anticipating a clean storage room to clean, but he wasn't expecting such a disaster. _What was I expecting? Cleanliness and Kenpachi don't really go along in the first place._

He gripped his aching shoulders, stretching them. He had just gone through hell. Twice. Kenpachi was putting him through conditioning, blatantly questioning how he could have been top at his old dojo with scrawny arms like that. Ichigo snorted resentfully at that for just a few weeks ago, Kenpachi was commenting on his speed and high potential. The never-ending pushups with weights on his back in order to 'help with his breathing', the laps up and down stairs, nearly leaving practice with broken bones from Kenpachi's extreme spurring, and now cleaning the storage room. He couldn't wait until he got out of this 'rookie' position, which had been thrust upon him even with his skills.

He began to drag out a cart full of miscellaneous, neglected sports gear as he began to plan how to quickly finish the job. The dust piled up on the cart temporarily discouraged him as he sighed and stretched his aching back in the sun.

_At least the weather's nice._

He turned around to examine the field behind him. Students were actively playing a soccer game in one field as he watched the goalie capture the ball rolling into the net. His eyes met the black surface of the track field as a few students practiced hurdles and jogged around the track. As he lazily scanned through the distant students speedily jumping over hurdles, he noticed a certain black haired student jogging around the track alone. His eyes narrowed when he realized the identity of the girl.

_That crazy midget. Is there anything she doesn't do?_

_Track and field, class government, and on top of that, her brother owns the school. _

_She always keeps herself so busy._

He couldn't understand her persistence in pretty much everything. Girls…weren't like that. She worked her ass off, busy juggling several obligations by herself. Yet he didn't get the vibe that she was trying to show off to anyone. Besides the occasional jabbing insults and fingers at him, she was quite reserved. She even talked formally and politely to nearly everyone- he considered himself an exception because their first meeting was far from polite and formal.

Attempting to grab accurate information about Rukia was nearly impossible- not that he tried. While she had to be friendly and know plenty of names and faces because of student council, a wall of distance still existed between her and anyone. Some accepted her and simply saw her as a friendly but aloof student while others misunderstood her distance as snootiness.

He glanced one more time contemplatively at the small running figure of Rukia, steadily completing another lap around the track.

He would never admit this out loud, but that quiet determination sparked her individuality from anyone else he'd met.

* * *

"Come buy baked goods!" Rukia announced as they strolled through the school festival together. Well, strolling was far from what Ichigo was doing- he was hunched, dragging his feet with a scowl on his face even though no one could see. He was forced to stop though, when Rukia told him that Chappy did not walk like a Neanderthal but hopped. She then continued with a warning that if he were to continue like that, she'd be compelled to change his current style of walking. He glanced at her- she had a determined expression as she raised the box, featuring the cookies.

He was sweating under that thing, it was so damn stuffy! The girls in his class had only begged him to wear it for a little more than an hour, but time passed by like a snail's worth. He had already taken dozens of photos with rabid fan girls; apparently Rukia wasn't the only deranged one obsessed with Chappy. That conniving midget had been driving him insane this whole week, using the threat of revealing his identity as Chappy to get him to do her dirty work. Whether it was helping her pass out flyers for the festival or even her going as low as pointing to her parched throat, voicelessly asking for a drink. And of course, using it to counter attack every insult he threw at her was a given.

For a girl who was probably only chosen to be class representative because of cowardly students, Rukia worked too freaking hard at her job. He sighed. His Kendo team was probably walking around the school while he was secretly here disguised as Chappy.

They passed the never-ending line from the kissing booth hosted by the upperclassmen. He slightly cringed when he noticed the reason for the long line; a blond girl with a figure too womanly and mature to be considered high school. Matsumoto. He rolled his eyes. _It would be a shock if she weren't doing that. _She was probably the reason why the male dominated line was dripping with saliva, although the blond student seemed to only encourage it by crossing her arms under her disproportionately large chest and sending a wink.

Abruptly, the blond girl noticed him and waved with a mischievous wink, neglecting her next customer, "Don't be shy, Chappy! Hop on over when you have time!"

He blanched and walked away more hastily while Rukia slightly sniggered, jabbing him with her elbow, "Hey, _Chappy_, did you hear that? I think she's interested,"

He was grateful she couldn't see him turn red in the costume as he stuttered back, "Shut up! Shouldn't you be more concerned about the customers she's taking away?"

With that said she suddenly ran off and he was tempted to call her but stopped from fear of being recognized. He watched her go towards the students in line for the kissing booth as they eagerly took wrapped packages of cookies from her.

He softly snorted. She was so damn persistent, working like that. It was just like her to offer those cookies to the students who had been waiting in line forever, unable to move from the spot. He was tempted to even think that her idea was pretty genius, but he stopped once he remembered the hell week she put him through. Even though it was mostly beneficial towards the festival. As he watched Rukia sell, she unexpectedly turned around to face him and gestured, "Hey, Chappy! Come over here and lend me a hand!"

Several minutes later, the boxes that the two carried were empty while their pockets were rimmed with money. She indignantly pointed at him with an _I-Told-You-So_ expression plainly on her face, "And you thought I wasn't even thinking about the kissing booth line. All I had to do was just take advantage of their success,"

Ichigo expressed his contempt by poking her forehead with his Chappy paw, "Tch, whatever."

She stopped in the middle of walking back to the booth to properly leer him, "You better be grateful you're currently dressed as Chappy…"

He tauntingly wiggled his Chappy paws at her as he amusedly watched her steam up, "Or what, shorty?"

She glared at him for another minute before yelling, "ICH-" Before she could even finish, Ichigo clamped a paw over her mouth.

"Shut up! How does a midget like you have such a big mouth?" She switched her attention to him and sent him a resentful look, "It's you who has the big mouth,"

Rukia glared at Ichigo inside the smiling Chappy and he returned the glare even though she couldn't see.

"Kuchiki-san!"

Rukia switched her attention to the voice which belonged to Hanatarou. She couldn't help but return his smile as he jogged over, a fancy camera swiveling back and forth tied around his neck.

"Hello, Hanataro,"

Hanataro took a quick look at Ichigo as Chappy before returning his attention to Rukia, "How's the selling going? Oh, hi Chappy- or whoever is in there,"

Ichigo silently waved to Hanataro from fear of leaking his identity out.

Noticing the suddenly quiet Ichigo, Rukia slightly shook her head, "It's going pretty well. Chappy and I are going back to stock up."

Hanataro took a step forward, engrossed in discovering who was in the Chappy costume. Ichigo retreated a step back uncomfortably as Rukia casually watched Hanataro examine him.

_Dammit, Rukia!_

Suddenly Rukia patted him, "Sorry, Hanataro. Chappy's a bit shy-"

She then promptly pointed to the camera dangling from Hanataro's neck, "Have you taken a lot of photos?"

Temporarily giving up on examining Chappy, he scratched his head shyly, "Ah, yeah. Oh! Can I take a picture of you and Chappy together?"

Chappy shook his head feverishly, wildly motioning with an X. His refusal only fueled Rukia's decision to accept as she gripped his arm so that he wouldn't run away.

"1…2…3, Chi-zu!"

Rukia grinned readily with a thumb up while Ichigo failed at pulling away from her grip.

Hanataro smiled at the seemingly successful photo, "Thanks! It looks great! I'll make sure to give you a copy once I finish,"

Drained of the remaining patience in him, Ichigo began to walk away. Rukia glimpsed at the Chappy beginning to escape, "Thanks Hanataro. I'll see you later!"

Still curious of the person dressed as Chappy, Hanataro watched Rukia catch up with Chappy as she then proceeded to whack him with her empty box. Furrowing his eyebrows, he lifted a finger to his lips. For some ridiculous reason, he couldn't help but feel that it was Kurosaki in the costume.

* * *

The two finally reached their booth as Ichigo quickly scanned the area for an abandoned tent to change out of the costume. After finding an empty tent, he sighed while he hastily changed out of the stuffy costume. _At least no one recognized me_. Putting on his Kendo outfit, he peeped out of the dressing room to see the booth empty besides Rukia, Hinamori, and a few other students. He glanced at the neglected costume before cautiously sneaking out to join Hinamori.

"Have some fresh cookies! Help out our class!"

He was relieved to find that everyone around was too busy with the event to notice him leaving the tent. He raised an eyebrow, puzzled at the fact that only a few of his classmates remained at their booth, "Where did everyone go?"

Hinamori, dusted with flour, turned back from the table, "Oh, Kurosaki! They all left to go look around, although I think some of them are going to the kissing booth to see what happened,"

"What exactly happened?"

She grinned winningly at him, "Well, Matsumoto kept complaining about being tired so the upperclassmen are scrambling to find a substitute. From what it looks like, we might have a chance at winning,"

Ichigo stepped forward and examined the booth, noticing ribbons in Hinamori's hands. Rukia had her back to him, her hands busily working on something while the other remaining students in the front were selling cookies, "Did you just bake some more cookies?"

She nodded with an eager smile, "Yeah, they've been selling rapidly! We ran out earlier but the home economics teacher let me use her classroom,"

Ichigo opened his mouth to excuse himself so that he could join his Kendo team when unexpectedly Hinamori placed her ribbons in his hands, "Hey, can you help Rukia with wrapping up the cookies? I've got to go get something,"

Before he could even muster an excuse, Hinamori dashed out of the booth and into the crowd to join some white haired student who looked suspiciously like their class president. He inwardly groaned, frustrated from losing the opportunity to finally escape his class's fundraising. Scratching his head while staring carelessly at the ribbons, he reluctantly joined Rukia who was currently trying to make perfect bows in wrapping the baked goods.

"What's up with Hinamori?" He blurted out while standing next to Rukia. He took the chance to steal a look at her bows; they were slightly crooked but done with precision. He nearly smirked when he saw how concentrated she was with her eyebrows bunched together and tongue darting out. He then lazily separated a ribbon from the rest bunched up in his hand and grabbed an unwrapped package.

Rukia merely snorted to herself once she heard Ichigo, "Oh, don't mind her."

Unable to tie another package again, she sighed and stretched her arms which were currently aching from carrying heavy boxes and wrapping the packages. It took her one glance at Ichigo's sloppy bows before she smacked him on the arm, "Idiot! What kind of bow is this? Are you trying to sabotage our booth?"

"They look perfectly fine to me, you crazy midget!"

She picked up one of his packages and gestured to it, "_This_ looks okay to you?"

He scratched his head while glancing at his Kendo outfit, "Yeah! Whatever, I'm not even supposed to be here right now,"

Before she could utter another word, one of their class mates buzzed past them with a box of goods, unintentionally pushing Ichigo towards Rukia. Both their eyes widened from fear of tipping the table and baked goods over. Ichigo swiftly grabbed the unsteady table with both hands, stopping himself from tripping over the table while consequently trapping Rukia within his arms. They both stared at each other, dumbfounded by the sudden series of events as they froze in their current spot.

He could see his own shocked eyes in her widened violet eyes. It felt like minutes passed by before either moved or spoke. But ever the cool one, Rukia regained her composure, confidently meeting his eyes before slipping out a smartass remark. Ichigo slightly reddened before barking back defensively about how it was her fault that she was standing there and making fun of his bows in the first place.

…It was then when he was reminded of how much he hated her sometimes; she seemed to be the only one who could cause his emotions to churn anxiously. _And_ cause him to be enormously pissed from feeling that way.

_Me? I can't ever lose my cool. _

_

* * *

_

After that little incident, he finally ran off to his kendo team. Relishing in the relief that he was done with wearing that stupid costume, he ignored his teammate's complaints about his mysterious disappearance.

Renji snapped his fingers, "Oh, were you helping out with the booth?"

Ready to change the topic, he rubbed his neck, "Yeah, yeah, they kept asking me for help,"

Renji smirked, "Tch, _baking cookies, _you mean?"

Ikkaku joined in the teasing, "No, no, of course not, Abarai. He was probably too busy making crafts and ribbons,"

The guys laughed as Renji slapped him on the back, "Or better yet, he was probably hopping around, showing off his snow white tail as Chappy,"

Ichigo nearly blanched before narrowing his eyes and pointing at the two teasing him, "Shut up! You-"his comeback was interrupted by a female voice, "Kurosaki?"

It was one of his classmates; or more specifically, one of those girls he saw at the after school festival meeting. Having overheard the conversation, she timidly approached him.

Surprised, he lowered his hand, "Oh, Hitomi, what's up?"

She shifted on the balls of her feet anxiously, "I was wondering if you could come back and help us with something,"

He hesitated, quickly trying to come up with a sufficient excuse, when she piped up again, "It's urgent!"

Rubbing his temples, he reluctantly agreed as she hurriedly motioned for him to follow her.

As he reached the booth, a few girls rushed up to him, their expressions desperate. He inwardly cringed, expecting bad news for him.

"Kurosaki!"

He replied monotonously, "What do you want?"

"Can you wear the costume one more time? We're about to take a class photo!"

"It would be awesome if Chappy could be in it!"

He gripped his temples in aggravation, "I already said-"His words were cut off when another girl rushed over, "Hey guys, Kuchiki dressed up as Chappy!"

* * *

AN: had to beat myself up to resume the story. Sorry about how late it is, I bet no one even remembers the story content but I didn't want to dish out a half assed chapter before at least writing up some of the next chapter. Expect an update in a couple of weeks at the very least because finals are kicking my ass. But I should be able to get more consistent (hopefully) in updating during break!


	4. An Unexpected Hero

**Chapter Four**

**

* * *

**

Ichigo gaped once he focused on the tiny Chappy heading his direction. Her paws were droopy because her hands only reached the wrists of the costume. She was even walking funny because of the size of the costume. The bickering between a few female students about how Rukia wasn't an appropriate choice for the costume faded into the background.

_Why?_ _Why would Rukia dress up as Chappy? She's practically drowning in that costume and she's dragging the costume feet._

A few other classmates who had readily accepted it motioned towards her, "C'mon, Kuchiki!"

He could only mutely stare as Chappy joined the rest of the other classmates who had already gathered together. The buzz of reactions to Rukia in the costume among his classmates was drowned out by his thoughts as Ichigo watched her from afar.

Even Renji appeared as Ichigo watched him ruffle Chappy's head, chortling lightly while some female classmates encouraged and complimented her in the costume. While trying to dig up a reason why Rukia would dress up as Chappy, he was abruptly reminded of the hell week that she put him through simply because she knew that he didn't want anyone to know that he had to dress up as Chappy. Then why the sudden change of heart? Was Rukia actually being…thoughtful?

_Nah…this is her chance to finally achieve her deranged fantasy of dressing up as Chappy._

Renji noticed Ichigo still standing alone and called out to him from the gathering, "Yo! C'mon,"

Shaking his head while fisting his hands in his pockets, Ichigo joined his class in front of the camera. He scanned the dozens of classmates around him for Chappy, who was standing next to Hinamori and the rest of the girls in his class.

_Or maybe the brat has a conscience for blackmailing me. _

"Okay, all together now!"

Ichigo observed the tiny Chappy who stood next to Hinamori, who was giggling because of her.

An arm rested on Ichigo's shoulder, and he turned his head to see Renji smirk at the tiny Chappy, "Surprised, huh?"

Ichigo was caught off guard, "What?"

Renji gestured to Rukia in the Chappy costume, "Isn't Chappy who you were looking at?"

He followed Renji's hand, observing Rukia one more time, "Y-yeah…"

"I'm surprised as you. Rukia doesn't usually do things like that. She tries to stay out of the limelight, y'know?"

Silently taken back by Renji's words, he responded by pushing Renji's arm off, "Guess her desire to be Chappy was greater than that,"

Renji snorted, "Guess so,"

Noticing the other students ready with interesting poses and smiles; Ichigo dully moved to face the camera even though temptation gripped him to return his attention to Chappy.

"Okay, 1…2…3!"

The class broke out with a loud "Chiizu!" as the camera flash greeted them.

Once the photos were finished, the class whooped and cheered as a few hands patted Ichigo's shoulder in congratulations for a successful booth. He shifted his head back to notice Renji straying away with other male classmates laughing and joking loudly. Instead of joining the guys, Ichigo struggled through the crowd of his classmates, searching for a particular bunny. After slipping out of the crowd, he noticed a few girls leave Chappy with a tiny wave.

Nonchalantly, he walked over to the now alone Rukia who then noticed him, "What are you, a dwarf Chappy?"

Without hesitation, Rukia proceeded to jab him in the stomach with her elbow, her Chappy head meeting his chin in the process. He let out a small cough while clutching his stomach though he had more trouble containing his grin. The midget was definitely leering at him on the inside of her costume.

He jammed his hands in his pockets as his eyes retreated back to the crowd of students that had just dispersed into smaller ones, "Don't think you're off the hook for blackmail,"

His words hit a nerve in Rukia as she stepped towards him, poking his chest with her paw, "That was a selfless act for our _class,_ you ignorant fool," He merely returned her glare with a haughty expression; attempting to win an argument with _Chappy_ was ridiculous.

She slightly retreated and crossed her arms, "And…I had to take on this duty because I couldn't bear to see you taint Chappy's image any longer,"

"Taint, my ass. I bet you just wanted to dress up as Chappy,"

Rukia's tiny hands molded into gripped fists as she glared at Ichigo from inside the smiling costume, "Shut up!"

Was Ichigo really that oblivious? She didn't dress up as Chappy for him to mock her like that. Although, she supposed it was reasonable- it _was_ Ichigo. She didn't think he was the type who would get down on his knees and thank her profusely. Not she would have minded if he did. She inwardly smirked when she imagined him on his knees, doing just that with a dumb look on his face.

"Rukia! C'mon!" The two's attention shifted to the voice; it was Hinamori waving while Renji passed her with what seemed to be a heavy box.

"Oh! I"ll be there, Momo!"

"Are they already starting to clean up?"

Rukia nodded at him while stepping towards Hinamori, "Ah,"

She began to walk when she realized that Ichigo was still standing there, "Hey! Just because I wore the costume doesn't mean you're finished with your job!"

Without another word, he casually caught up with Rukia and ruffled her Chappy head messily, grunting a "Thanks," before heading off first towards Hinamori.

First surprised, then amused by his gratitude, she jogged towards the two as best as she could without tripping. _Stupid strawberry. _

_

* * *

_

Ichigo was surprised to see that school life stayed hectic even after the festival. He was hoping for school life to settle down after the crazy festival, but with Rukia around it seemed school life would never stay quiet. In addition to that, Ichigo was not pleased about the event that was soon to occur that day.

His group mates from class were coming over to finish their project. It wasn't the fact that most of them were wealthy while his home was modest that bothered him. But the possibility of his family, or more likely his dad embarrassing him was worrying indeed. Shooting death glares at Rukia obviously didn't work when she nominated Ichigo's house for finishing the project at. His glares seemed to simply bounce off her eager nomination. The brat merely had gleaming eyes, dreaming of cartons of strawberry milk in boxes stored at his house. And the fact that she had never gone to a home with a clinic attached to it sweetened the deal for her.

"_So do you ever bump into patients at home?"_

"_Do you have breakfast with patients?"_

"_I thought you couldn't get any stranger than your bad temper and orange hair"_

Needless to say, she was an utter pain in the ass.

The doorbell rang, but instead of going straight to answer it, he warned his dad one final time not to act like himself. His dad merely waved it off with an incoherent promise. Heading to the door, he opened it to see Renji, Hinamori, and Rukia on his doorstep.

"Yo,"

He nodded as he moved to the side for them to enter, "Hey,"

Isshin and Yuzu peeked out from the living room before excitedly joining Ichigo in greeting his friends. Ichigo grimaced when he saw Rukia put on her model student act in front of Isshin and Yuzu. With those two as gullible as ever, he knew Rukia probably had them under her charm already.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Kuchiki Rukia, Ichigo's classmate,"

Ichigo watched his father giggle with Yuzu as he glared at them suspiciously.

"Oh, _Rukia_- is it alright if we call you Rukia? It's a pleasure!"

Rukia modestly smiled, "No, the pleasure is all mine,"

Isshin wrapped his hands together, his eyes glistening with a dreamy expression on his face, "Ichigo! How did you meet such a lovely girl?"

Furiously trying to keep calm, he looked away, his hands restrained in his pockets, "Shut up, old man,"

Rukia shot him a haughty smirk, testing Ichigo's patience even further.

While his dad and Yuzu also greeted Renji and Hinamori, albeit with less fervor, Ichigo scrambled to stop Rukia from curiously looking around for the clinic. A glaring competition ensued.

Isshin sneakily took notice and wriggled his eyebrows, "Oh Ichigo, my boy! Already staring at her so lovingly!"

Ichigo punched his dad's face without a second thought. The three guests slightly blanched in shock.

With his dad momentarily down, Ichigo wisely took the opportunity to herd the three upstairs into his room.

With the two beginning to settle down and Rukia temporarily satisfied with investigating his room, Ichigo went back downstairs to get refreshments.

He popped open the fridge to retrieve some juices and a strawberry milk carton. Yuzu strolled in from the living room and watched him place the drinks on a tray, along with some crackers.

She touched the strawberry milk in surprise, "One of your friends likes strawberry milk too?"

"Yeah. That damn midget," he blurted out darkly.

"_Really?"_

Ichigo glanced at her, surprised by her enthusiastic response, "What?"

Yuzu shook her head and hands vigorously, "Oh, nothing!"

With her excitement clearly growing, she skipped out of the kitchen into the living room. He narrowed his eyes. Something bad was brewing. He could feel it.

Yuzu skipped over to the living room to deliver more good news-the special girl in Ichigo's mind even shared a favorite drink with her! She was starting to like Rukia more and more. Isshin cried out in joy when Yuzu told him in his ear as Ichigo glared at them while heading back upstairs. He sighed as he made the trip back to his room. He was completely against having the group meeting at his house. But it was unanimous- the other three were excited to go to his house.

He came upstairs to see the three with their books out already. Hinamori sat on the floor, Rukia lounged on his bed, while Renji on the floor leaned against the bed with one arm sprawled out on the bed sheet.

He glanced at Rukia doodling on her notebook and tossed a carton of strawberry milk towards her, "Oi, midget,"

It landed on the bed next to her as her eyes met the strawberry milk eagerly. She paused her doodling to unwrap the straw and carefully poke it through the carton.

Ichigo pulled out his chair and joined the group, "Now, what do we have to finish?"

Hinamori tapped her pen against her chin contemplatively, "We just have to finish editing our report and finish our presentation,"

Renji groaned disapprovingly as he lazily reached over to grab a drink, "That's too much work. I thought we were done with the presentation,"

Rukia pointed her pen accusingly at Renji, "That's because you ran off before class ended last time! Besides, we only need to rehearse since you and Ichigo haven't gone over your lines yet,"

Ichigo rolled his eyes as he skimmed through his notes, "I _did _go over my lines. Don't involve me in it,"

Renji snorted, unwilling to be solely blamed as the slacker of the group, "Well, it obviously wasn't enough because _she_ didn't remember,"

"Shut up!"

* * *

In a way, Yuzu already knew Rukia before she came over that day.

She had heard of Rukia while vacuuming Ichigo's room one day. She had accidently knocked over his notebook while cheerfully humming along to her favorite TV show theme song, and it was when she bent over to pick it up that she found the glorious notes.

She noticed _Kuchiki Rukia _scribbled neatly on the right side of the paper and was surprised that her brother had a girl's notes. The only girl Yuzu could remember Ichigo ever bringing home was Tatsuki, and she hadn't visited in a while. Her eyes grew with delight as she flipped through the pages; there were random doodles of bunnies and more specifically, Chappy.

But what was even more exciting was that Yuzu had technically seen her before. There were several days when Yuzu would happen to be outside when Ichigo came home, so she had noticed Rukia on the bus a few times. The small, pretty student with black hair and violet eyes in the bus window. It was just that she couldn't put a name to her face then. Yuzu felt that fate was all the more tied to the two since she was already familiar with Rukia before they had even greeted each other.

Rukia had grown even more on her when she noticed her kind and soft smile. She was even impressed with the elegance that Rukia seemed to exude. And she couldn't help but giggle whenever she saw the array of different emotions Ichigo unconsciously emitted around Rukia. She had never seen her older brother act so funny before.

Giddy, she hugged a pillow, huddled on the couch in the living room. She peered over at Karin, who was busy watching TV.

"Don't you think it's exciting, Karin?"

"What?"

"About him and Rukia-chan!"

Karin displayed boredom both for Yuzu and the TV, impatiently flipping through channels, "No, Ichigo's always had girls over."

Yuzu frowned defensively, "Well, technically only Tatsuki! And she's definitely not as girly as Rukia,"

"Well, then what about the other female classmate who came?"

Yuzu scrunched her eyebrows, "They don't seem any closer than simply classmates!"

"Isn't that the same with Rukia?"

"But he even had her class notes, so they must be very close!"

Karin stretched lazily before getting up to go to the kitchen, "Whatever. I'd be more surprised if you two are actually right,"

Yuzu gave an indignant huff as Isshin, who had just entered, frantically tried to reassure her, "Don't worry Yuzu, I can feel it!"

* * *

Renji stretched lazily, flexing his wrist from writing too much, "Yo, what are you going to bring for the field trip?'

Hinamori glanced up from her book, "Oh, right! I almost forgot about the field trip,"

Ichigo sighed, "I don't know,"

"When is it again?"

Renji scratched his head, unsure, "Next week?"

"Ah, it's next week," Rukia answered.

Like Hinamori, Ichigo had totally forgotten about the field trip. He replayed the moment when his class discovered that they were the winning class. He remembered it was during an especially boring period, as his classmates had eagerly gotten up from their seats, whooping and cheering. The headmaster had announced the winning class over the speaker, and his class made certain to take advantage of its bragging rights. Ichigo had dropped his eyes when he heard, glad that he at least got something out of being forced to dress up as Chappy. His class was especially ecstatic to go on the field trip, which was to a snow resort. His classmates had noisily bragged that it was better than the field trip that the upperclassmen took last year, which was at an onsen.

The biggest field trip he had gone on at Karakura was to some exhibit at a museum, so he was fairly surprised to hear that the field trip was to a snow resort. He inwardly scoffed at the extravagance of the trip, although he supposed reaping up the benefits as a student at Seireitei wasn't so bad.

Hinamori tapped her chin with her finger contemplatively, "I don't think I've ever gone skiing before,"

Renji and Ichigo turned their attention to her, surprised, "Really?"

Rukia raised her hand, "I haven't either,"

Renji raised an eyebrow, "You too, Rukia?"

Rukia nodded, "Ah. I've never had the chance,"

Hinamori smiled bashfully, "Same here. Although the ski lift looks pretty cool,"

Renji grinned mischievously, "Yeah, but if you're not careful, you can fall off,"

Hinamori's eyes widened in response, "You can?"

Ichigo rolled his eyes as he reassured Hinamori, "Don't mind him, it's not that dangerous,"

Hinamori clapped her hands, "At any rate, I'm excited. I really didn't have the faintest idea that our class would win,"

"It's all thanks to Chappy," Rukia piped in, a playful grin on her lips. Ichigo narrowed his eyes at her with Renji unaware of her hidden message.

Renji rubbed his neck, "It's all because the upperclassmen were too damn confident with their booth,"

"Tch, then how come I saw you racing over there after it opened?"

Renji slightly turned red, "Shut up! I was just checking out the competition,"

Ichigo sniggered, "Ah, that's for sure,"

"At least I wasn't baking cookies or whatever at the booth,"

Rukia spoke up before Ichigo could retaliate with a comeback. She gave Renji a dry look, "You barely helped,"

"I was busy! Besides, I helped clean up, didn't I?"

Rukia simply gave him a look.

Ichigo stretched as he noticed the sun setting, "Wanna call it a day?"

Rukia slumped on his bed, shutting her book close while Hinamori yawned, skimming through her notes, "I think we can go ahead and do that,"

Ichigo began to clear up the mess of drinks and snacks on the ground while the other three stuffed their books in their backpacks. Hinamori picked up a few of the remaining wrappers from the snacks that Ichigo neglected, following him downstairs into the kitchen.

Rukia glanced at his desk which was sufficiently organized to her surprise. He barely had any photos besides a family photo at what seemed to be a festival. It seemed to be an outdated photo, although a soft grin made its way onto her face when she noticed Ichigo scowling in it. His father was grinning widely with one arm gripping Ichigo while his two younger sisters both carried colorful windmills.

Renji waited in the doorway, "Oi, Rukia! Let's go,"

Placing a hand over the strip of her bookbag, she quietly followed Renji downstairs, where Hinamori and Ichigo waited.

The three bowed, thanking Isshin for allowing them to visit as he chortled goodheartedly, "Think nothing of it! I was beginning to wonder if Ichigo had even made any friends at school,"

Ichigo rolled his eyes at his dad as he opened the door to let them out.

Isshin gripped Rukia's hands before she passed the door, "You're welcome anytime, Rukia! Please come visit soon!"

She initially glanced at him, surprised, before smiling, "O-okay, I will,"

Yuzu smiled brightly while waving, "It was very nice meeting you, Rukia!"

Ichigo, already outside with Hinamori and Renji, glanced back at the door, "Oi! Stop with your antics, old man!"

"This is for your own sake, son!"

Hinamori giggled while Renji slightly smirked. With that said, Rukia then left, slightly confused. Even though Ichigo's family was slightly clumsy and eccentric, they were also affectionate and warm. It was an environment that she had never experienced before, and uncomfortable as it was, it was also exciting. She could tell that Ichigo probably had a lot of fun with his family, thinking back to the old photo she saw in his room. Although, with Ichigo's bad temper, she was surprised that his family displayed nothing close to that. She furrowed her eyebrows. _He really is a strange person_.

* * *

"Man, you really gotta work on that mouth of yours," Renji shook his head as he slung his backpack on. It was after Kendo practice, and they were the last to leave. Due to Ichigo's brash and competitive nature, they were forced to close and lock the Kendo room as a consequence.

Ichigo scratched his head, annoyed, as he walked out of the room ready to leave, "Shut up. Didn't know that old man would make us close,"

He stalled right outside the doors to the dojo, waiting for Renji to come out, "You coming?"

Renji nearly made it through the doors when he suddenly turned back, "Hold on! Forgot something,"

Unwilling to wait any longer, Ichigo threw him the keys, "I'll be outside,"

With a quick response from Renji, he pushed open the doors to leave the building. He sighed as he stretched out his body and rubbed his neck. The sun light bathed him, easing the pain he felt from Kendo practice.

Suddenly, he noticed a group of guys heading towards him. They were all dressed in a different uniform from Seireitei High, each with a similar spiked or gelled back hairdo and piercings in several places. Identifying them as a bunch of Yankees, he simply stayed in place as he watched them close the distance between them.

The tallest of them gravitated to the front of the pack, blowing smoke into Ichigo's face, "You're Kurosaki, right?"

Ichigo merely dropped his face, annoyed by his presence and the smoke, "Can you get to the point? I haven't got all day,"

The tallest, presumably the leader, laughed obnoxiously as his crew followed in laughter. "You're funny, kid. I like a guy who gets to the point."

Ichigo casually stepped forward and flicked the leader's cigarette out of his stubby fingers and quietly killed the cigarette light beneath his shoe, "Don't think I can say the same for you,"

"Tch, tough guy, eh? Guess Tony was right,"

The sound of knuckles cracking followed in response, "Well, then, let's see how straightforward Hito can get when you mess with his crew,"

Ichigo's face dropped even lower, "You refer to yourself in third person?"

The leader, provoked, swiftly threw punches at Ichigo who dodged his attacks before landing a precise kick on his legs. Flinching from the pain, the leader gazed up to see Ichigo's intimidating stance before him.

Hastily looking back to his bewildered crew, he aggressively signaled them to start, "What the hell are you guys doing? Kill that little shithead!"

Ichigo fluidly passed through the continuous line of thugs targeting him. A chorus of moans and foolish yells surrounded Ichigo as he pummeled his fist into a skinny thug's cheek, drops of blood spilling out of his mouth. In the midst of fighting, the school door had opened with Renji walking out to see Ichigo against several thugs decorated with different bruises and blood.

"What the hell is going on?" Renji bellowed, stunned at the amount of fighting going on.

Renji stepped over a thug knocked out as he watched Ichigo whip his head back to notice Renji.

"What the hell do you _think _I'm doing?"

Renji stepped forward, "Dumbass, don't you know you're going to be in deep shit once Kenpachi or whoever finds out?"

Ichigo mimicked his movements while twisting the arm of a thug who failed in catching him off guard, "How was I supposed to know _they_ were going to come all the way here?"

"So why are these fucking Yankees here?"

Ichigo narrowed his eyes, frustrated, "I don't know!"

The two suddenly heard a clatter behind Ichigo.

"R-Rukia?" Renji paled, gaping at her.

Ichigo promptly turned back to see the boss unconscious on the ground with a small knife in his hand while Rukia held a shovel in her hand, simmering with anger. Putting two together, he realized Rukia had hit the leader with a shovel. He was amazed.

"R-Rukia…What the? Where'd you get that shovel?"

Huffing a stray hair away, she leered at him, "Really, Kurosaki? You had to bring _thugs_ to our school?"

"I didn't bring them!" Ichigo retorted, though it made no impact on dissolving her heated glare.

The remaining thugs ran over to their knocked out leader, crying out his name.

Rukia then turned her attention to the crew, leering dangerously at them, "I suggest you leave _immediately _or I will report you."

Carrying the boss and whatever was left of their pride, the thugs took one glance at her and Ichigo before hastily leaving the school ground.

Renji smirked, amused, "Damn. How'd you see him with the knife?"

Still annoyed with Ichigo, she slightly leaned on her shovel while gesturing back to the track field, "I was at track and I came back to get some water,"

Renji clapped Ichigo's back as Ichigo glared at him in response, "You would've been wiped if Rukia wasn't here,"

Ichigo vigorously pointed to Rukia, "It honestly doesn't bother you that this _crazy_ midget just hit that boss with a shovel?"

Rukia glared at him in response.

Renji scratched his head while holding on to his bookbag slung over an arm, "What bothers me more is that you just got your ass saved by that tiny girl,"

While Ichigo retorted back with a scowl, he was honestly surprised as Renji was. How had that tiny girl, who looked like you could break her in two, managed to beat up a leader of a gang? Granted, this certain leader also referred to himself in third person, but she was tiny! Not to mention, she was part of a family that had connections; she came from a wealthy family. It was then he realized that perhaps Rukia had more to her than she revealed. And though he would never admit this out loud, he was curious to discover all the sides that Rukia had to her.

* * *

AN: Hope you liked this chapter, although it's definitely not my favorite. I knew I just needed to dish out _something_ at least so pardon the rush and lack of quality. The next chapter should mostly consist of the field trip, which so far has been really fun writing. Can't promise a specific date as to when it'll be released, but I'm hoping that it won't take as long as this chapter did. Comments and suggestions are appreciated and encouraged!

p.s. call me a noob, but does anyone know how to place more spaces between the text? I've tried shift + enter and other things, but nothing's worked :/


	5. A Familiar Face

**Chapter Five**

* * *

Rukia was getting the hang of this skiing thing. Making a slightly awkward brake, she glanced back at the white hill she accomplished. Skiing was much more complicated than it seemed. It took forever for her to put on all those layers of clothes and then buckle the skis on. On top of that, her skis were being rebellious, never quite moving in the direction she wanted. But it was exhilarating and she breathed in the cold air eagerly with a grin.

As weird as it sounded, skiing reminded her of track and field. Both sports made her feel alive while speeding against the wind. Although, she was slightly thrilled to see that she could travel even faster on skis. She could rush down the slope as fast as she wanted, zooming past her surroundings in a blur. She and Hinamori had Renji to thank for teaching them the basics before running off with some other male classmates. So now here they were, stuck at the beginner's slope where Rukia thirsted for a bigger challenge after going down several times.

"Rukia!" Rukia shifted her attention to Hinamori, who clumsily chased after her down the slope, nearly grabbing on to Rukia for balance after landing.

Hinamori gazed down at her skis, brushing off the snow on her knees, "The other skiers make it look so easy,"

She glanced back at Rukia, raising an eyebrow, "You seem to have caught on to it quickly, though. It took me forever to catch up with you,"

Rukia nodded eagerly, "Ah, it's fun. Although it is pretty dif-"Look, it's Kurosaki and Abarai!"

Rukia and Hinamori turned their heads to see a few girls bunched together from class near them. They were gazing and pointing at the two figures nearly finishing the tall slope across from them.

Hinamori and Rukia both momentarily glanced at each other, "Kurosaki and Abarai?"

_Ichigo and Renji did run off somewhere… and judging by the size of that mountain, I wouldn't be surprised if those two competitive idiots did try to conquer it._

Intrigued, Hinamori grabbed Rukia's arm, breaking her train of thought, "Hey, it _is_ them!"

Rukia studied the figure in black with the unmistakable flop of orange hair flying down the slope. She then noticed Renji right along Ichigo, on his skis. With their unique hair color, the two were fairly easy to spot. Plus, the crazy speed they were racing down at was a dead giveaway. She didn't need to audibly confirm it; it was definitely Ichigo and Renji.

Hinamori also squinted at the figures steadily becoming closer into focus, "They're really good,"

Rukia simply nodded as she watched the two finish the mountain rambunctiously, arguing about who rightfully won. Even after that steep slope, they were still too busy quarreling to even remember to take a rest.

Hinamori shook her head at the two arguing and called out their names, "Renji! Kurosaki!"

The two stopped mid argument and glanced over at Rukia and Hinamori. They began to glide towards them, carrying their argument over to the girls.

Renji removed his goggles, "Yo, who do you think finished first?"

Rolling her eyes, Hinamori responded with an unsatisfying answer, "You both finished at the same time,"

Discontent, Renji barked back with a bias explanation of the race. Meanwhile, Rukia gazed at Ichigo's red foreign looking snowboard fixatedly, preferring the board over their argument.

Ichigo also zoned out of Renji's argument, noticing Rukia's lingering eyes on his snowboard. He studied her wide, saucer-like eyes on his board with suspicion and curiosity.

Rukia gestured at the board once she noticed she had his attention, "Hey, Ichigo. How do you ride that thing?"

He raised an eyebrow at her, "You wanna try riding a snowboard?"

She contemplated for a second before meeting his eyes, "Can I go faster down the slope then?"

* * *

Rukia examined her feet bound on the snow board, very much intrigued by her new board, "So when are we going to go down the slope?"

Surprisingly, Ichigo had actually agreed to teach her boarding without any jeers or protests. She figured that either he had full confidence in her potential for boarding, or he knew that he'd eventually be forced to teach her anyway.

Ichigo handed her her helmet and goggles, "Just put these on first,"

While being handed her gear, she inspected the slope before her feet. She put on the helmet and goggles as she shifted her board, amused by the control her feet had over the board.

Ichigo noticed her playing around while brushing snow off his helmet, "Hold on, don't move your board yet,"

She sassily brushed off his order, "Alright, _instructor,_"

After studying her board, she stole a glance at Ichigo, who was buckling his board. Impatient, she fiddled with her board while Ichigo wiped his goggles, when suddenly her board began to move on its own. Gazing down at her board gradually moving downward, she glanced back at Ichigo.

"Ichigo,"

Not bothering to look up, he responded impatiently, "What now, Rukia?"

"How do you brake again?"

He looked up, "What do you mean, brake again? I thought I already taught-" Rukia disappeared in front of him, advancing swiftly down the slope.

"Rukia!"

Shaking his head, he dropped his helmet as he then proceeded to chase after her on his snowboard.

Crouching down, Rukia found herself gaining more speed as she slid further down the slope.

"Rukia! Brake!"

"Idiot, I'm trying to!"

By attempting to do so, she found herself changing the direction of her snow board instead. She held her breath momentarily as her board's direction changed the view in front of her; she was heading off trail towards a group of trees.

Meanwhile, Ichigo raced after her, steadily closing the distance between them. _Dammit, how's that brat moving so fast?_

His eyes widened once he saw her gliding towards a few trees as she wriggled her arms awkwardly, unable to control the board's direction. Anxiety clawed at his stomach; she was too close to the trees to stop without resulting in harm.

Finally reaching the tail of her jacket, he hastily grabbed her arm and placed her behind him while endeavoring to slow down as the two collided in between two trees. The tree branches shook in response as snow from the branches sprinkled them. Lifting his protective hand away from Rukia's head, Ichigo rubbed his throbbing shoulder, grimacing. He had hit the tree harder than he thought. Rukia was jumbled up, her head resting on his chest and her board weighing heavily on his legs.

She slowly scooted away from Ichigo, grabbing her temple. She then hurriedly turned her attention to Ichigo, who involuntarily let out a soft groan while flexing his shoulder. While she was fine, she knew she couldn't say the same for Ichigo, who had acted as a barrier or an airbag for her.

He glanced in her direction, "Are you okay?"

Rukia nodded but frowned worriedly, "I should be asking you that,"

Ichigo ignored her worried expression and pointed to her board, "Take off your board before you try to kill me again,"

She crossed her arms indignantly before unbuckling her board, "It's not my fault that I had such a negligent instructor,"

He glanced away, his face hooded with guilt, "Shut up,"

Rukia's scowl dissipated as she responded thoughtfully, "It wasn't your fault. I should have been more careful,"

After removing her board, she returned her attention back to Ichigo when her eyes abruptly widened at his face, "Ichigo…"

He met her concerned eyes, confused, "What?"

She pointed to his nose, "You're bleeding."

Ichigo glanced down at his nose and noticed blood dripping down, "Shit,"

The two heard a siren and Rukia turned her head back to notice a snow mobile heading speedily towards them.

A snow patroller promptly arrived, whipping off his goggles, "Are you guys alright?"

Rukia looked up at him, "I'm alright but he's bleeding,"

The snow patroller examined Ichigo before helping Rukia unbuckle his board, "Let's take him to the clinic,"

* * *

Ichigo sighed as he finally left the clinic, a pack of tissues stuck in his back pocket from the nurse's incessant lecturing. The nurse finally allowed him to leave after being forced to have several ice packs laid on his shoulder. He proceeded down the hall into the large and blinking gift shop, which led towards the cafeteria.

Rukia followed him, her eyes intermittently straying towards the colorful gifts around her.

Attempting to lighten the mood, she tilted her head teasingly, "So, how about another lesson?"

He stopped walking and gave her a condescending look before turning his back on her, "Not on your life, brat,"

Dawdling behind, Rukia studied his back, amused. They continued to stroll through the store when a young girl alone on a bench in the hallway caught Rukia's eyes. She appeared no older than 8 and was dressed in a lavender, puffy jacket with her tiny boots dangling from the bench. Rukia promptly drifted from Ichigo, heading towards the small girl who was also clearly upset.

Noticing Rukia's sudden disappearance, Ichigo wrinkled his forehead, turning back to search for her along the racks of sports gear. He paused once he found her right outside the store and momentarily watched as she softly talked to the little girl, her violet eyes gentle and her smile small but amiable.

"Oi, Rukia," Rukia shifted her head to see Ichigo nearing them. The little girl also mimicked Rukia, her eyes slightly widening as Ichigo came closer, his figure towering over the two of them.

Noticing the little girl turning tense from Ichigo's intimidating stance, Rukia smiled reassuringly before introducing him to her, "This is Ichigo,"

Rukia glanced back at Ichigo strangely before mischievously whispering to the girl.

Confused but in a resigned mood after the snowboarding fiasco, Ichigo watched as the little girl broke out in a half-smile while stealing glimpses at him. By doing so, Rukia had momentarily distracted the young girl from her troubles.

Finally getting the girl's guard down, Rukia returned her attention to Ichigo to introduce her, "This is Lilia,"

Ichigo took a step closer, "Are you lost?"

The girl hesitated before nodding sadly, "My brother left me here and I can't find him,"

Ichigo narrowed his eyes, already developing a dislike for her older brother, "Why did your brother leave you here by yourself?"

"Because he's mean! He wanted to hang out with his friends and he said I was a nuisance,'

Rukia reached out her hand, "Would you like us to help you look for him?"

The girl hesitated, "But what if he gets annoyed if we find him?"

Ichigo crouched down to her level, a determined expressed glazed over his face, "Don't worry. Your brother didn't mean what he said. I'm sure he's looking for you right now,"

Lilia wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her jacket before meeting Ichigo's eyes, "You really think so?"

He simply nodded, "Ah."

Rukia smiled encouragingly as she took Lilia's tiny hand, "Let's go find your brother. Where was the last place you were together?"

The girl contemplated before pointing out a direction, "Um…I think it was the cafeteria,"

The three headed off back in the original direction Ichigo and Rukia had started earlier. They paused at the entrance of the cafeteria to scan the generously large area for her brother.

Ichigo glanced back at Lilia, "So, he has black hair, with a white jacket on, and he's about this tall?"

Lilia nodded, "Mmhm. My brother, Ryo,"

Ichigo and Rukia weaved through the rows of tables and faces, searching for a 'Ryo' while hoping that Lilia would soon discover him.

* * *

After trailing around the tables in the cafeteria, the three left without any luck. Lilia slightly slumped, disheartened.

Ichigo patted her head gently, her worry gripping him, "It's okay. We'll definitely find him,"

Rukia encouragingly pulled on Lilia's hand, "C'mon, maybe he'll be in the main lounge,"

The two quickened their pace to the main lounge while Ichigo trailed behind, keeping his eyes open for any sign of Lilia's brother. They reached the main lounge, which was humming with busy clients and employees.

Rukia gestured to the information desk in the front, "Maybe we can ask the front desk for help,"

Lilia nodded in agreement as the three shuffled through people to reach the desk, where a young woman stood behind the desk, tapping on her keyboard attentively.

"Lilia!"

Rukia and Lilia both turned around at the voice. Rukia froze in surprise once her eyes reached the person in question.

Lilia rushed to him, "Kano!"

The tall, brown-haired male greeted her with a hug, "Where were you? Ryo has been looking for you everywhere,"

Lilia pointed back to Rukia and Ichigo, "They helped me look for Ryo,"

His eyes widened once he recognized her, "Rukia?"

"Ashido?"

Ashido stood up and warmly smiled at her, "It's been a long time,"

She gladly returned his smile, "It has. I thought you went overseas to study,"

"Yeah, I came back a few weeks ago. Some old friends of mine invited me out here. How are you?"

"I'm fine, I'm actually here on a school trip. Are you staying here permanently now?"

Ashido nodded with a grin, "Yeah,"

Giving Rukia a curious look, he gestured to Lilia, "How did you…?"

Rukia gestured to Ichigo, who was quietly listening with his hands in his pockets, "I met Lilia while leaving the clinic with my classmate,"

Ashido nodded, finally understanding the situation, "I'm glad you did. Ryo's been worried sick, looking for her,"

Ichigo piped in with a slight grumble, "So has Lilia,"

Lilia beamed at Ichigo in response.

Ashido scratched the back of his head, smiling apologetically, "Ryo tends to be a bit reckless,"

"On that note, we'd better go back or else he might lose his head,"

Rukia nodded, "Ah,"

Lilia padded over to Ichigo and Rukia, giving them both a hug, "Thank you, Rukia!"

"Thank you, Ichigo," Lilia slightly giggled when she said his name, earning a confused expression from Ichigo.

Lilia smiled genuinely, "I hope we can see each other again,"

Ashido took Lilia's hand as she waved at the two, "Yeah. I'll see you soon, Rukia,"

Rukia answered with a smile, nodding in agreement as she watched them leave.

The two then turned to each other, their mission complete.

Ichigo scratched his head, "Who's he?"

Rukia began walking, "He's an old classmate,"

Kano Ashido didn't seem like just an old classmate to Ichigo, but he decided against asking any more questions. He caught up with Rukia easily with a few long strides, when something dawned on him.

He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at her, "Ah, what exactly did you tell Lilia earlier?"

Rukia continued walking nonchalantly, coyly replying, "Tell her what?"

Ichigo scowled in response, "You know what I mean,"

"Ah, that. I just told her the truth behind your identity,"

Ichigo wrinkled his forehead, still perplexed.

His face abruptly darkened, a sign of him understanding what she meant, "…Rukia,"

Taking it as a sign to flee, Rukia then bellowed with one last poke at his pride, "Ah, I'm in the mood for some fruit salad!"

* * *

Ichigo couldn't sleep. He couldn't be blamed, though, since he _was_ in a room full of snoring guys. He rested his arm over his forehead as he attempted one more time to ignore the racket of humming, sporadic snorting, and whistling. Kicking off his bed sheets, he sat up and scanned the dark room for a lit clock. Unable to find the time, he reluctantly got up and cautiously weaved his way through the maze of his sleeping classmates.

Taking one last look back at the pack of sleeping guys, he silently opened the door and slipped out. Rubbing his eyes at the bright light once he left his room, he shoved one hand in his yukata and headed towards the arcade.

Little did he know that a certain midget was there as well, currently immersed in a toy pickup game. With her eyes nearly burning through the clear screen from concentration, she was close to winning when the toy suddenly dropped on the way to the exit. She sighed.

"Would you like me to win that for you?" She whipped her head back to see a looming figure uncomfortably close to her. It was a complete stranger- a blond, built man with an intimidating expression. He flashed a suave grin at her as he took a step forward, causing her uneasiness to rise.

She met his eyes with uncertainty, "Ah, no thank you."

He brought his face down closer to her as he pinched her chin, "Then would you like to have me as a consolation prize instead?"

She pushed away his hand and firmly rejected him through her piercing eyes, "Please do not make me repeat myself,"

On the other side of the arcade, Ichigo was running. He had heard an estranged voice followed by another that sounded suspiciously similar to Rukia's. His suspicions were found accurate when he gazed over the game machines to see a petite black haired girl and a blond man who towered over her.

Nearly reaching his destination, he saw a glimpse of a familiar yukata, "Rukia!"

Rukia turned around, surprised, and relief soon entered him once he realized she wasn't hurt.

"Rukia! Are you…" He slowed down and stopped, shocked at the scene before him. Rukia was standing calmly without a trace of any physical harm on her. The same couldn't be said for the blond man who was currently rolling around on the ground, moaning in pain.

She blinked at him, startled by his unexpected presence, "What are you doing here, Ichigo?"

Ichigo gaped, "What the hell is going on?"

Rukia crossed her arms, "What do you mean? And what's with that dumb look on your face?"

With the pain subsiding, the blond man noticed Ichigo and began to yell, "Security! Someone help!"

Ichigo blanched as he noticed a burly man in uniform heading their way. Cussing under his breath, he grabbed the unsuspecting girl next to him and ran.

Rukia pulled on his hand wrapped around hers, "Ichigo!"

"Shut up and just run!"

Fortunately, she complied, following him through the rows of game machines.

"_Stop right there!"_

"C'mon!" Ichigo pulled Rukia with him as they weaved through the arcade, lights and video game noises flashing all around them. Without even a chance to whip her head back and check, Rukia continued running until Ichigo pulled her into an abandoned aisle that led to an exit hallway.

"Over there!"

Ichigo abruptly pulled Rukia into the derelict hallway, silently catching his breath as he watched the security pass them unknowingly.

After catching their breaths, Rukia whispered next to him, "Are we safe?"

He glanced out the hallway and then turned back in the dark, blindly searching for her violet eyes, "Yeah, I think so,"

She didn't say anything afterwards, and neither did he.

Laughter suddenly struggled to come out of Ichigo's mouth. It was all unexpectedly very funny, and he found himself slightly chuckling. If it were another girl, he probably would have had to bring down his fist on the unlucky pervert. Hell, in any circumstance, the guy was the one who did the saving. Especially for a girl who was unbearably tiny with twig arms and legs.

Rukia's stern voice cut off his soft laughter. Apparently she didn't find it very funny, "What are you laughing about?"

"You, dumbass."

Rukia glared at him in the dark, "Why on earth would you be laughing about me?"

He snorted, "I'm not laughing about you, I'm laughing _at _you. It's just amusing how a midget like you beat a guy more than twice your size,"

"I do that to you all the time," she replied matter-of-factly as he then returned her previous glare.

He then whipped his head back to examine the game room, making sure that it was safe to return.

"Ichigo,"

His eyes scanned the faces in the arcade, "What?"

Rukia slightly coughed before continuing, "Thank you."

Completely surprised by her words, Ichigo slightly froze. It was uncharacteristic of their relationship so far. Ichigo was familiar with bickering and being annoyed with her, but he was new to the obvious expression of thanks that came out of her mouth. Just a few grateful actions had been enough for the two to quietly express their thanks to each other.

He replied with his eyes still glued to the arcade, "Ah. Don't mention it,"

Ichigo glanced out the hallway one last time, "Let's go,"

Unaware of his hand tightly enveloping Rukia, he pushed past a small crowd that formed around one game machine. The game machine was beeping wildly like a broken record as the crowd cheered. Coins noisily cascaded down into a bucket below for the lucky winner. He slightly scoffed in distaste, shaking his head while passing by the crowd.

"Ichigo-" Rukia called but her voice got lost in the midst of the noisy crowd. Ichigo continued to stride down the aisles, unknowingly dragging Rukia while seeking a quieter area.

Out of the blue, a clear voice struck their attention a little too easily. The voice was clear and all too familiar.

"Kurosaki! Kuchiki!" Ichigo's face paled once he realized who the voice belonged to.

"I know it's you two, turn around!"

Ichigo and Rukia hesitantly turned around to see Yoruichi sensei with her hands at her hips, along with a heavy bucket filled with coins.

Yoruichi's eyes zoomed in on the two hands intertwined together, and that was all it took for Ichigo and Rukia to realize that they had still been holding hands. They both dropped each other's hands hastily as a strange expression appeared on Yoruichi's face.

"What are you two doing here so late?"

"I had to go to the bathroom!"

"I couldn't sleep!"

Yoruichi simply smirked. She wasn't actually seeking an explanation. All she needed was one glance at the expression on their caught faces, "Alright, alright. No need to get anxious,"

She stroked her chin contemplatively, studying the two anxious students closely watching her expression.

Ichigo examined the full bucket of coins hidden behind her back, his suspicion growing, "Sensei, were you the winner of that game over there?"

She rubbed her neck as the coins in the bucket jingled from the movement. A resigned half-smile appeared on her face, "Ah, you caught me,"

With a sudden grin, she then stepped closer to the two who were tempted to step back in fear, "How about this? I won't tell anyone about your little secret if you don't tell about mine,"

With her back turned towards the two, Yoruichi waved before running off, "Don't stay up too late!"

Ichigo and Rukia stared at her back dumbly, puzzled by her offer. Ichigo scratched his head while Rukia also furrowed her eyebrows, pondering what Yoruichi meant. Ichigo's eyes nearly bulged out of his pockets when he realized what Yoruichi meant. _Shit! She must think we're…we're…_

It only took one glance at Ichigo for the same understanding to dawn on Rukia as well. Ichigo hastily looked back towards Yoruichi's direction only to find her gone. He willed his eyes to look anywhere but adjacent to him, where his petite classmate stood.

Suddenly self conscious, they stood awkwardly, unconsciously taking a step back from each other.

Ichigo scratched his head while Rukia placed her hands together, both unable to meet each other's eyes.

* * *

"No, you idiot! Move it to the right!"

"I _am,_ hold on!" Ichigo jerked the joystick, his eyes narrowed on the crane. Rukia stuck to him closely, her face inches away from the clear screen. Her eyes grew as he deftly picked up the toy with the crane. She hit his arm repeatedly in anticipation, bossing him around even though he knew what to do.

He murmured under his breath, "Almost in…"

Rukia nearly had her nose kissing the screen, "Come on, get it in!"

The toy nearly slipped from the crane when Ichigo swiftly yanked the joystick towards the exit where it finally fell.

He smirked although he was inwardly relieved. Crouching down to the little exit compartment, he peered in before reaching in and grabbing the toy.

Successfully retrieving the toy, he handed it to Rukia whose wide eyes were sparkling with excitement, "Told you I could get it,"

She merely swatted him as she examined her stuffed toy with glee, "Only because it was won with my direction,"

He crossed his arms, sighing, "Whatever,"

He glanced at Rukia who was admiring her doll, obviously pleased. He was amused by how a stuffed toy could affect such a strong, unyielding personality like hers. He rubbed his neck from the strain of the game, "I'm going to start heading back,"

She finally looked up, "Ah. I will too, then,"

He started off first as she trailed along behind him. Rukia held on to her doll while she followed Ichigo through the main lounge area. The area was empty and would have also been silent if it weren't for the crackling fireplace that lit up the lounge. Rukia glanced over at the extravagant french window which displayed the light snow cascading down outside. Noticing the empty porch outside, she curiously made her way towards the door.

Ichigo yawned before shifting his head to notice Rukia leaving the lounge. He watched her settle on the porch through the window, which tempted him to follow her.

Rukia slowly moved her head back once she heard the porch door click, meeting Ichigo's eyes. He walked over and rested his arms on the railing, joining her.

"Oi, aren't you going to bed?"

She returned her attention to the snow, "Soon,"

"Why did you leave your room earlier?" she suddenly asked.

He leaned against the railing, gazing at the sky, "I couldn't sleep,"

She slightly snorted, "Are the boys that loud?"

He smirked while nodding slightly, "Ah. Not as loud as you, though,"

She responded with a leer, "Idiot. If anyone is to be blamed for rowdiness, it should be you,"

He softly snorted in disagreement.

"So did you really want that stupid doll that bad?" Remembering how her face lit up, he pointed to the toy that was cradled in her arms.

She slightly blushed, uncertain if he was making fun of her or not, and blurted out defensively, "I just noticed it on my way to the restroom!"

Her pink cheeks didn't go unnoticed by Ichigo, who found it intriguing. Kuchiki Rukia rarely, if ever, was caught off guard. He merely watched her mockingly, which irritated her.

She crossed her arms indignantly, switching to offense, "Then what about you? How did you find me?"

He rubbed his neck, "Like I said, anyone can hear you barking from across the room,"

Before she could retaliate with a hit, he continued, unknowingly spilling out his thoughts, "Although, I should've known I wasn't needed. Someone like you is more than capable of beating up a pervert,"

She didn't reply, quietly surprised and strangely pleased by his subtle compliment. The two gazed out quietly, enjoying the view.

Suddenly, Rukia spoke up as if she were dishing out a secret, "I've never been to an arcade before,"

Ichigo turned his head to properly look at her, surprised. She didn't meet his eyes but continued to stare out.

A ghost of a smile appeared on Ichigo's face as he looked back at the snow. He was pleasantly surprised by her sudden change in mood and that she was confiding in him, though the subject was trivial.

Encouraged by her serene mood, he found the courage to ask, "How was it?"

"It was… interesting. Now I think I understand why these arcades are always filled with students,"

He glanced at her once more when it dawned on him that she looked nicer when she was calm and tranquil, gazing up at the stars like that. He quickly abandoned the thought.

"Tch, you thought it was fun for your first time?"

He counted the events that happened on his hand, slightly reddening on the last one, "After getting approached by a stranger, running away from security, and getting caught by your teacher?"

She nodded with assurance while holding up her doll, "I won a toy too,"

He scowled and grabbed her doll and bopped her head with it, "You mean, _I _did,"

She narrowed her eyes contemptuously at him, retrieving her doll from the top of her head before passing him, "Don't be so petty, you'll go bald,"

With that said, she reached the door and slipped inside, leaving Ichigo to fume at the door.

* * *

author's note: a very overdue chapter, i know. school began last month, so i've had to neglect the story for a bit :( I hope Ichigo and Rukia are in character enough for you readers; it's definitely the most important and worked on aspect in this story for me.

in response to Kawaiiberry-chan, the 17th will definitely be coming sooner than you think ;) please don't hesitate to leave a comment or suggestion; they inspire me! and for those who have, thanks for your thoughtful comments :)


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